ISLAMABAD, Dec 20 Nepal's Ambassador to Pakistan, Mr Bala B. Kunwar, said on Saturday that Ajmal Amir Kasab, an accused in the Mumbai carnage, was neither arrested nor handed over to India by Nepal.

Speaking at a press conference here on Saturday, he however said that Ajmal might have landed in Nepal and kidnapped by Indian intelligence agencies, but hastened to add that no such thing was in the knowledge of his government. He pointed out that there was no visa requirement for Indian nationals and they could visit Nepal even without a passport.

He said Nepal had no counter-terrorism cooperation agreement with India, under which Muslims were handed over to the neighbour. He, however, said the two countries had an extradition treaty.

He parried a question about the perception that Kathmandu had become a hub of Indian intelligence agencies which freely operated there and faced no resistance from law-enforcement agencies even if they chose to kidnap somebody for taking him to their country.

He said he was not addressing the press conference under any pressure from India.

“Although I am an ambassador of a small country, I am not trying to defend India's position under any pressure. I am saying it because Nepal has been dragged into the episode,” he remarked.

He said that media reports suggesting Nepal had arrested Ajmal Kasab before 2006 and handed him over to India, were baseless and it was a concocted story aimed at maligning Nepal. He said it was also aimed at souring good Nepal-Pakistan relations.

Kunwar said Nepal, as a sovereign and responsible state, had always adhered to its stated policy of not allowing its territory to be used against the interests of any country, not in the least to make a booby trap to set Pakistani nationals up on false charges.

He expressed confidence that such false charges would have no adverse impact whatsoever on relations between the governments and peoples of Nepal and Pakistan.

In reply to a question, he said there would be no change in immigration rules for Pakistanis.

He said hundreds of Nepalese were languishing in jails in Pakistan on different charges, but Nepal would never ascribe it to be a bias on Pakistan's part. Likewise, there were Pakistanis in jails in Nepal, but they were never discriminated against.

The apparently unprepared ambassador answered many critical questions by saying “I will have to check it”. He was not sure if Ajmal Kasab had ever visited Nepal or not. He was also unaware if a case as claimed by Advocate C.M. Farooq was pending in the Supreme Court of Nepal. He did not mention the name of C.M. Farooq throughout his press conference, but said in reply to questions that the government of Nepal was ready to extend all possible assistance to the lawyer for tracing Ajmal Kasab in his country. He said the lawyer had so far not contacted the embassy.