No pressure to release Indian pilot: Official

islamabad — The Foreign Office on Thursday categorically rejected the impression that the release of a captured Indian air force pilot by Pakistan last February was made under any pressure.

“There was no pressure on the government to release Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan,” Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said at the weekly Press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The release was made as a message of peace and goodwill,” he said.

The spokesperson was responding to a question regarding the statement of a Pakistan Muslim League-N leader who alleged that the Indian pilot was released under pressure after his aircraft was downed by the army inside the Pakistan territory.

The spokesperson said that country’s armed forces were ready to deal with all threats.

“India will find the leadership, the people and armed forces of Pakistan ready in the event of any misadventure against its territories as evidently demonstrated in February last year,” the spokesperson added.

Chaudhri said India was involved in terrorist activities inside Pakistan and its spies had been caught several times, adding that India’s involvement in the recent bomb blast at a madrassa in Peshawar could not be ruled out.

To a question regarding the case

of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, the spokesperson said the government offered consular access three times, however, there was no positive response from India.

The official said that Pakistan would not amend its laws to allow an Indian counsel to appear be

fore Pakistani courts on behalf of the Indian spy, adding that India should cooperate in this regard.

He said Pakistan strongly condemned blasphemous sketches and desecration of Holy Quran by certain irresponsible elements in some developed countries. —