ISLAMABAD Pakistans interior ministry said Saturday it had given its investigators ten days to submit a preliminary report on the Mumbai attacks suspects in the light of Indian information.

Ministry chief Rehman Malik told a news conference here that cases could be registered only on the basis of tangible evidence and more time could be given to the investigators if necessary.

India blames the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group for training, equipping and financing the 10 gunmen who used automatic weapons and hand grenades to bring havoc to Mumbai during a siege that lasted 60 hours.

Pakistan has said India had provided some information on January 5 but no evidence. It said it was conducting its own inquiry and had ruled out handing any suspects to India.

Malik said the Indian government could also be requested to provide more information to help the ongoing inquiry in Pakistan.

He advised India to be patient and allow time for the completion of the Pakistani inquiry. He pointed out that India had taken around 40 days to provide information on the Mumbai investigations.

He reiterated Pakistans commitment to bringing the culprits behind the Mumbai attacks, which killed 174 people including nine gunmen, to justice but added that Islamabad would not be dictated to by India or any other country.

Islamabad has said it is doing all it can to crack down on militant groups, announcing this week that it had so far detained more than 70 members of an Islamic charity linked to LeT and placed 124 others under surveillance.

Pakistan has also confirmed that the lone surviving Mumbai gunman now in Indian custody is one of its citizens. It has said the attackers were “non-state actors”.