If not Pakistan, who were Pathankot attackers: Digvijaya to PM

Following the NIA's alleged claim that there was no evidence indicating that Pakistan was directly complicit in the Pathankot terror attack, Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh on Friday sought to know from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval as to if it was not Pakistan then who the attackers were.

"NIA has given a clean chit to Pakistan in the Pathankot terror attack. Would Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the NSA (National Security Advisor) please tell us, if it was not Pakistan, who were the terrorists who attacked our Pathankot airbase," Digvijaya said.

"My question to them is when they allowed Pakistan special investigative team which included ISI, Pakistan army intelligence also to be a part of SIT, why did they not have a quid pro quo arrangement that our team will also go and interrogate Hafiz Sayed and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar," he added.

He also said that the NSA has been claiming there were six terrorists but the bodies of only four persons have been recovered.

"If NSA and NIA are not even clear as to how many terrorists are involved what kind of investigation has NIA done?" he said.

"It is a monumental failure of the internal security system of the country and not only the Indian diplomacy," he added.

The reaction comes in the wake of Director General of NIA Sharad Kumar's interview to an English news channel where he said, "No evidence to show that Pakistan government or Pakistani government agency was helping Jaish-e-Mohammed or Masood Azhar or his aides carry out Pathankot attack."

However, reports have emerged of the NIA chief rubbishing the entire interview asserting that he never gave a clean chit to Pakistan

Earlier, the NIA had said that it has still not received any response from Pakistan on Supplementary Letters Rogatory sent to the neighbouring nation in connection with the probe on the Pathankot air force base attack.

The Interpol had earlier issued a fresh Red Corner notice against JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar and his brother Abdul Rauf for their alleged involvement in the Pathankot attack.

According to NIA sources, JeM suspect Shahid Latif is the main handler in the Pathankot attack and that his location at the moment should probably be in Pakistan.

Latif was first arrested in 1994, convicted in 1995 and his jail term was over in 2010. He deported to Pakistan after that through the Atari Border.

Masood Azhar, his brother Abdul Rauf and Latif are being touted as the main culprits into the deadly attack on the Indian Air Force base.

Four terrorists were killed when they carried out a suicide attack on the strategic Indian Air Force base in Pathankot during the intervening night of January 1-2. Seven security personnel were also killed during the 80-hour-long gun battle.