FO rejects 'mischievous' Indian media reports linking Pakistan to Afghanistan temple attack

Published April 7, 2020
Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui. — Photo courtesy Radio Pakistan
Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui. — Photo courtesy Radio Pakistan

Pakistan on Tuesday rejected reports circulating in the Indian media that linked Pakistan's security agencies to an attack on a gurdwara in Afghanistan last month.

At least 25 people were killed in the attack on a Sikh temple in Afghanistan’s capital on March 25 where worshippers were offering morning prayers. The attack had been claimed by the militant Islamic State (IS) group.

According to a report by Indian publication India Today, Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security (NDS) on Saturday arrested Abdullah Orakzai alias Aslam Farooqi, the mastermind behind the attack, who they claimed had ties to Pakistan's premier intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

The India Today report also added that Orakzai alias Farooqi enjoyed "close relations" to the Haqqani network and the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

Responding to these allegations, the Foreign Office in a statement said it rejected the "officially-inspired reports" and termed the move "mischievous and condemnable".

Terming these news reports part of a "well known smear campaign against Pakistan", the FO spokeswoman said these were "patently designed to malign Pakistan".

"Seeking to implicate Pakistan in this terrorist attack is part of the desperate attempts India is making to divert attention from its own unacceptable actions and state-terrorism in India-occupied Jammu & Kashmir."

The FO said Pakistan remained "confident that such Indian ploys will not succeed in misleading the world community".

Must Read

May 12, 2007 — the day Karachi went berserk

May 12, 2007 — the day Karachi went berserk

Retired SHC judge recalls the bloody Saturday when the city was under siege for nearly 24 hours and held hostage by forces in the face of whom even jurists and law enforcers were helpless.

Opinion

Editorial

A turbulent 2023
Updated 12 May, 2024

A turbulent 2023

Govt must ensure judiciary's independence, respect for democratic processes, and protection for all citizens against abuse of power.
A moral victory
12 May, 2024

A moral victory

AS the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted on Friday in favour of granting Palestine greater rights at the...
Hope after defeat
12 May, 2024

Hope after defeat

ON Saturday, having fallen behind Japan in the first quarter of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup final, Pakistan showed...
Taxing pensions
Updated 11 May, 2024

Taxing pensions

Tax reforms have failed to deliver because of distortions created by the FBR bureaucracy through SROs, apparently for personal gains.
Orwellian slide
11 May, 2024

Orwellian slide

IN recent years, Pakistan has made several attempts at introducing an overarching mechanism through which to check...
Terror against girls
11 May, 2024

Terror against girls

ONCE again, the ogre of terrorism is seeking the sacrifice of schoolgirls. On Wednesday, just days after the...