Now government should go after Masood Azhar and Hafeez Saeed: Asaduddin Owaisi

HYDERABAD:  Hope the Central government would now go after Jaish-e-Mohammed honcho Masood Azhar and Lashkar-e-Taiba co-founder Hafeez Saeed, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said on Tuesday while praising the Indian Air Force’s surgical strike in Pakistan’s Balakot that wiped off a JeM terror camp. 

Speaking to media here, the Hyderabad MP said: “Though the foreign secretary has called it a non-military action, this is a step which we have expected from the government for a long time. Masood Azhar and Lashkar-e...whatever that name is..I won’t call it Taiba because it is Lashkar-e-shayateen. The government should go after these two evil persons.”

“I was expecting this sort of action after the Pulwama attack. It is a right step taken by the government. We stand with the government,” he added. Referring to Article 51 of the UN charter, which gives a country the right to self-defence if it has been a victim of terror attacks, he said: “We faced terror attacks in Pathankot, Uri and Pulwama. Going by the UN charter, India has used the right of self-defence.

Our Air Force has replied and our party supports the government’s action. If Pakistan wants to take some stupid action then our defence forces are on high alert.” Earlier in the day, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said: “India on Tuesday carried out air strikes at a massive JeM camp in Balakot, eliminating a “large number” of terrorists,”