‘Duplicity of Pakistan’: India seeks strong action against Jaish chief Masood Azhar

India on Friday demanded that Pakistan take strong action against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar following reports that he delivered a speech at a public gathering in Bahawalpur.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that if the report is accurate, it would reveal Pakistan’s “duplicity” in addressing terrorist activities.

“We demand that strong action be taken against him (Azhar) and he should be brought to justice. There has been denial that he is not there in Pakistan,” said Jaiswal.

“If the reports are correct then it exposes the duplicity of Pakistan. Masood Azhar is involved in cross-border terror attacks on India and we want that strong action be taken against him,” Jaiswal added.

He made the remarks in response to a question at his weekly media briefing.

Azhar delivered his first speech in over 20 years to Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) members, as announced by the group’s online digital platform on Tuesday.

Azhar’s speech, marking a century since the collapse of the Turkish caliphate in 1924, promised a resurgence of terror actions against India and Israel, with the goal of creating a new global Islamic framework, The Print reported.

The Jaish-e-Muhammad did not disclose the date or location of Azhar’s speech. While the group’s digital platforms have occasionally shared past speeches by Masood Azhar, this one is the first that can be definitively dated due to its references to the ongoing Gaza war.

Quoting an Indian intelligence official familiar with JeM operations, the report added that the speech was likely delivered late last month at the Umm-ul-Qura seminary and mosque complex near Bahawalpur, Pakistan.

This 1,000-acre facility includes an administrative block and several housing units. Azhar had been banned from making public appearances since a faction of Jaish tried to assassinate Pakistan’s former military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, in 2003.

Prior to that, he was detained after the 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament, though he was never prosecuted. In 2016, Pakistani authorities placed him in what they referred to as “protective custody.”