NEW DELHI: India’s Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, on Friday passed a resolution condemning bail granted to alleged Mumbai terror planner Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, by a Pakistan Court and Prime Minister Narendra Modi said a strong message was conveyed to Pakistan.

According to the Indian Express, the resolution asks the government to take every step to put pressure on Pakistan to bring the matter related to the Mumbai nightmare to a satisfactory conclusion.

Earlier in the day, Mr Modi said in Parliament that India has “strongly conveyed” to Pakistan its opposition to bail for Lakhvi. He said in a statement that bail for the alleged conspirator was a big shock.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who will make a detailed statement in Parliament in Monday, said: “It’s hard to believe there is lack of evidence against Lakhvi. We demand that Pakistan reverse this decision. We are keeping an eye on this issue.”

Asserting “without doubt” that the conspiracy for Mumbai attack of 2008 was hatched in Pakistan, Ms. Swaraj said 99 per cent evidence is available in Pakistan and Pakistani investigators had six years to collect all evidence, according to the Express.

She said: “It is their (Pakistan’s) responsibility to ensure punishment to them (Mumbai attack accused) by furnishing evidence.”

Referring to the massacre of school children by terrorists in Peshawar on Tuesday, Ms. Swaraj said: “We felt the pain of the families whose loved ones were killed in the attack. That day not only were their children killed but a part of humanity also died.”

Immediately after, the Lok Sabha, which had passed a resolution on Wednesday against terror attack in Peshawar, adopted a resolution: “We express grave concern of the Indian people that just one day after the tragic killing of 141 innocent children and others in Peshawar, an accused terrorist could be released on bail by the same country.

“It seems that the lesson that there should be no compromise with terrorists has not been learnt.”

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2014