Krishna speaks to Pak FM on terrorism, 26/11 trial

Amid concerns in New Delhi over rising infiltration, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna spoke to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi, on Wednesday, and pressed for "effective steps" to dismantle infrastructure of terror, saying it is still being "used" for anti-India acts.

During the telephonic conversation, Krishna also enquired about the status of the Mumbai attacks trial with an emphasis that perpetrators should be brought to justice expeditiously and the entire conspiracy unravelled. "They reviewed the status of the trial in Pakistan of the accused and proclaimed offenders in the Mumbai terrorist attack case. Krishna underscored the need for bringing the perpetrators of the attack to justice expeditiously and requested that India be kept informed of the progress of the trial," a Ministry of External Affairs statement said.

"He stressed the need for Pakistan to unravel the full conspiracy behind the Mumbai terrorist attack following the leads provided and available in Pakistan, and requested that India be informed also of the results of such investigations," it said. Krishna said Pakistan "needs to take effective steps to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism which exists in Pakistan and continues to be used for anti-India activities." This assumes significance as infiltration attempts from across are on the rise leading to concerns here.

Reflecting this, Defence Minister A K Antony said earlier in the day that the infiltration attempts have increased as "inimical forces across the border are jittery" over return of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir. "In 2009, violence (in Jammu and Kashmir) came down, compared to 2008. At the same time, compared to 2008, last year attempts to infiltrate have gone up. It is a matter of serious concern to us," Antony told reporters here.

During the telephonic talk, Krishna thanked Pakistan for the recent release of 100 Indian fishermen and expressed the hope that the remaining more than 500 Indian fishermen and over 400 Indian fishing boats still in Pakistan's custody will also be released soon. He stated that India had freed 31 Pakistani fishermen and will soon release the 19 remaining ones whose nationality has been confirmed by Pakistan.

The two leaders agreed to pursue further cooperation on other humanitarian issues, such as those relating to prisoners. Krishna also conveyed New Year wishes to Qureshi.