Official sources in New Delhi told The Express Tribune that that, on November 20, the Indian Deputy High Commissioner in Islamabad met an official in Pakistan’s foreign office to hand over a communiqué with a copy of the letter from authorities in the State of Maharashtra addressed to the next of kin of Kasab informing them about the completion of the legal process and his hanging on November 21.
However, sources added that the Pakistani official refused to accept the letter. Subsequently, it was faxed from the Indian High Commission to the official and a transmission report was received. The Indian High Commission has not received any “acknowledgement” from Pakistan’s foreign ministry,the sources said.
Indian Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde told reporters in New Delhi that he had even ended up sending a fax to Islamabad after the letter was rebuffed. Other officials said a similar message had been couriered to Kasab’s family.
“The external affairs ministry gave the letter to Pakistan but Pakistan did not accept it. Then we faxed the letter,” Shinde said.
The 25-year-old from the village of Faridkot in Punjab, was hanged at the Yerwada jail in Pune on Wednesday morning.
India’s Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid said the government had followed diplomatic protocol by informing Pakistan in advance about the execution. “We attempted to convey to the Pakistan Foreign Office that this decision had been taken and the execution will be done this morning,” Khurshid said.
“Since those missives were not accepted by the foreign office, by fax we intimated the information to them.” An official of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad told The Express Tribune that neither the Pakistani government nor any other individual has approached the commission for the repatriation of Kasab’s body yet. Kasab has been buried in Yerwada jail, where he was hanged.
Foreign Office reaction
Foreign office spokesperson Moazzam Ali Khan, when contacted, said no one has contacted the government of Pakistan to claim that they were relatives of Kasab.
In his reaction to the hanging, the spokesperson said that Pakistan condemned terrorism in all its forms and was working with countries in the region to quell the menace.
In a statement carried by PTV, Khan was quoted as confirming that “the Indian deputy high commissioner informed us about the execution” of Kasab.
(WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM AFP)
COMMENTS (4)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
I can imagine the guys at the Pakistan’s foreign office were busy closing their ears, shaking their heads saying LALALALA!
We deny that Kasab..... ++++++++++++++++ Press 1 for Denial Press 2 for strong Denial Press 3 for vehement Denial.
Muslim calling bhagvan on his death bed. Nice try Indian, leave the false flag ops to Israel.
No surprise Pakistan refused to accept the letter, they might even tell you that 'Faridkot' is not in Pakistan itself, no shame left to protect.