No official request for Kasab's lawyer: Pakistan

Pakistan on Thursday claimed that it has not received any official notification from India regarding the request for a Pakistani lawyer by Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist captured alive during the Mumbai attacks.

"We will see when it comes. We would not like to jump the gun," Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit told reporters at the weekly briefing in Islamabad, replying to a question on Kasab's request for a Pakistani lawyer, to represent him in the trial in India.

Basit said nothing has been received officially or formally from India in this regard.

Kasab had told a special court in Mumbai on Wednesday that he wanted a Pakistani lawyer to represent him, after the judge revoked his order appointing Anjali Waghmare as his counsel.

Replying to another question on the Parliamentary elections in India and the party Pakistan would prefer to see in power in the neighbouring country, Basit said, "We are looking forward to working with any government. It is for the people of India to decide (whom they vote for)."

When asked about Prime Minister Manmohan Singh linking resumption of bilateral talks to taking action against terrorism, Basit said terrorism is a global phenomenon and the Mumbai attacks, which had 'internal and external dimensions', had confirmed this.

"Only through cooperation can the two countries effectively fight terrorism and extremism, and not through disengagement," he said

It was up to India to respond to Pakistan's 'positive' steps, Basit said.