India on Friday called for strong action against Masood Azhar, the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed, after reports surfaced that he had addressed a public gathering in Bahawalpur. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, stated that if the report is true, it would expose Pakistan’s “duplicity” in tackling terrorism.
Jaiswal said, “We demand that strong action be taken against him (Azhar) and that he be brought to justice. There have been denials that he is in Pakistan.” He added, “If the reports are accurate, it exposes Pakistan’s duplicity. Masood Azhar is involved in cross-border terror attacks on India, and we want strong action against him.”
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The remarks came in response to a question during Jaiswal’s weekly media briefing. Azhar’s speech, his first in over 20 years, was reportedly delivered to Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) members, as announced by the group’s digital platform on Tuesday. In the speech, Azhar promised a resurgence of terror actions against India and Israel, advocating for the creation of a new global Islamic framework. The speech marked a century since the collapse of the Turkish caliphate in 1924.
The report, citing an Indian intelligence official, suggested the speech was delivered late last month at the Umm-ul-Qura seminary and mosque complex in Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Azhar has been restricted from public appearances since 2003 after an attempted assassination of Pakistan’s former military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, by a Jaish faction.
