Jaishankar’s visit: Pressure mounts on Lakhvi case, says lawyer

Says Indian foreign secretary’s visit is likely to influence outcome of the case.

ISLAMABAD: A lawyer for the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, voiced fear on Tuesday that the Indian foreign secretary’s visit to Islamabad would influence his client’s case.

“Definitely, the Indian foreign secretary will put further pressure on Pakistan against my client who is facing illegal detention since December last year,” Rizwan Abbasi told The Express Tribune. The government, according to him, has registered “a frivolous case” against his client “on India’s pressure”.

Indian Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar arrived in Islamabad Tuesday morning and met his Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry.

The lawyer said Lakhvi, the commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), was booked in a six-year-old kidnapping case on a bogus complaint, after he was granted bail by an anti-terrorism court (ATC). “The kidnapping case was registered on a bogus complaint which indicated there was Indian pressure behind it,” he added.

Special prosecutor Amir Nadeem Tabish, who appeared in the case, rejected the allegations made by the defence counsel. While talking to The Express Tribune, he said that the judiciary is independent and nobody can pressurise the court.

However, the prosecutor admitted that though the complainant in the case was not coming forward, Lakhvi’s statement was cause enough for detention.

Abbasi also denied a BBC report about how Lakhvi was enjoying a privileged life in Adiala Jail. The jail administration has placed a jammer within a radius of two kilometres, he said, saying it was near-impossible for Lakhvi to even use a mobile phone.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 4^th, 2015.