The outcome of the proposed meeting between Pakistani and Indian foreign ministers in September depends on the weight New Delhi gives to the evidence provided by Zabiuddin Ansari aka Abu Jundal, reportedly an LeT member extradited by Saudi Arabia. The man told his Indian interrogators that Pakistani intelligence agents were in a Karachi control room helping coordinate the 60-hour siege by 10 attackers. How far the statement is a result of the coercive methods of extracting evidence characteristic of security agencies in South Asia remains to be determined. The statement however contradicts the position taken consistently by Pakistan that no state agency was involved in the affair. The statement by Abu Jundal has led home minister Chidambram maintain that the control room couldn’t have been set up “without some kind of state support.”
Differences over the issue turned out to be the major stumbling block during the talks between the foreign secretaries of Pakistan and India. Pakistan’s foreign secretary rejected the role of any state agency in the Mumbai attack while he expressed willingness for joint investigations into the 26/11 carnage. The issue has assumed crucial importance in determining the future of the ties of the two countries. While a more discreet S M Krishna maintained that information extracted from Ansari would have to be corroborated with other sources, he too emphasised that once this is done, “we will have to make a value judgment whether Pakistan can be trusted or not.”
There is a dire need on the part of Pakistan to improve relations with India. Pakistan’s stability is tied up with the Afghan peace. A return of the Taliban to Kabul after the Nato pull out in 2014 would again unite the non Pakhtun nationalities against the religious militia. A new civil war will start. This will send millions of refugees in need of shelter through porous borders to Pakistan. The civil war can be avoided if both Pakistan and India discourage it. Pakistan faces the greatest challenge to its stability from the insurgency along the Durand Line while the bulk of its army is located along the Eastern border with India. This can be relocated to the tribal areas only if there is an understanding between the two countries. India too has to realise that it needs Pakistan’s help against the rising phenomenon of extremism. As the Indian foreign secretary put it, bringing the guilty to justice in Mumbai terror attacks would be the biggest confidence building measure of all. While New Delhi should ensure that there is no unwarranted finger pointing, Pakistan should fully cooperate in locating and punishing the architects of the Mumbai attacks irrespective of their position.