India releases list of most 50 'most wanted fugitives' in Pak
Spurred on by the May 2 raid that saw US Special Forces hunting down Osama Bin Laden, India now has released its '50 Most Wanted' who are, according to intelligence reports, hiding in Pakistan.
The list includes underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, 26/11 mastermind and LeT founder Hafiz Saeed and dreaded terrorist Zaki ur Rehman Lakhvi.
Hafiz Saeed, who is involved in Mumbai terror attack and various other attacks in India, tops the list which also includes Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar, the principal accused in the 2001 Parliament attack after his release in exchange of hostages in the Khandhar hijack episode in 1999.
The government's action comes in the midst of acute discomfort for Pakistan which has been tying itself in knots over the charge of sheltering al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, who was shot dead in a luxury mansion in the garrison town of Abbottabad.
The list also includes names of al Qaeda operative Illyas Kashmiri, who is accused of transnational crime and conspiracy to commit various terrorist acts in India, close associates of Dawood, Memon Ibrahim alias Tiger Memon, Shaikh Shakeel alias Chhota Shakeel, Memon Ayub Abdul Razak, Anis Ibrahim Kaskar Shaikh, Anwar Ahmed Haji Jamal and Mohammed Ahmed Dosa, all involved in the 1993 serial bombing in Mumbai.
Chief of Hizbul Mujahideen Sayeed Salauddin, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front founder Amanullah Khan, Punjab terrorists Lakhbir Singh, Paramjit Singh Panjwar, Ranjit Singh alias Neeta and Wadhawa Singh were also named as most wanted fugitives.
Names of Mumbai terror attack case accused Sajid Majid, Major Iqbal, Major Sameer Ali, Sayed Abdul Rehman alias Pasha and Abu Hamza were included in the list of fugitives.
While a US-style operation, which trapped Osama, seems a little far-fetched for India, the country's military officials have refused to rule out capability.
"Yes, we can," say military experts.
But they caution India to first upgrade its special forces equipment, prepare for 'catastrophic' fallout, including a possible nuclear conflict, and bring itself up to have a political will before it even thinks of such a daredevilry.
Their remarks, earlier this month, has already invited angry reactions from Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and army chief General Asfaq Parvez Kayani, who warned against such 'misadventure', saying it would invite a 'catastrophic' response.
Also, in a statement on May 9, Home Minister Home Minister P. Chidambaram asserted that top don Dawood Ibrahim, high on India's list, is indeed in Karachi.
"We have often asked Pakistan to extradite or transfer Dawood to us. I think we know that Dawood Ibrahim lives in a house in Karachi. I think the broad coordinates of the location are also known. But the Pakistan flatly denies that Dawood Ibrahim is in Pakistan," he said.
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