7/11 blasts: India to provide evidence to Pakistan

New Delhi, Oct 1: Notwithstanding Pakistan's denial of its involvement in the 7/11 serial bombings on Mumbai's suburban train network, India today said it would provide evidences of the ISI's complicity to Islamabad.

''We will give whatever proof we have in this regard to Pakistan...We wil share the evidence in the Mumbai blasts case with Pakistan,'' said Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon, who assumed the office today.

'"We want Pakistan to act on the evidence of the 7/11 blasts," he added.

Mr Menon's assertion came a day after the Mumbai Police made the sensational disclosure about the complicity of Pakistan's ISI in the July bombings in the western metropolis.

Asserting that Pakistan would be ''judged on the basis of its actions, not words,'' the Foreign Secretary said the joint terror mechanism would be the forum to share the evidence.

''In most likelihood, the issue will come up in the Foreign Secretaries' meet in Delhi in November,'' he added.

Yesterday, Mumbai Police Commissioner A N Roy had held Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) responsible for the serial bomb blasts in suburban trains that killed nearly 200 people and wounded over 700 in one of the worst terror attacks in the country's economic capital on July 11 this year.

Mr Roy said the multiple blasts were the handiwork of the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT) and banned Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

With regard to the July 18 Indo-US nuclear deal, the Foreign Secretary said it had received the bipartisan support of the US Congress. ''We hope it will go through the legislative process soon,'' he said.

Earlier, Mr Menon, a 1972 batch Indian Foreign Service Officer, formally took over as Foreign Secretary for a tenure of three years till July 2009. Before the current assignment, he was India's High Commissioner to Pakistan.

Mr Menon, 57, succeeded Mr Shyam Saran, who has been made Special Envoy for negotiations relating to the civilian nuclear agreement between India and the United States.

He has also served in China, Israel, Austria, Japan and Sri Lanka. He was at one time adviser in the Department of Atomic Energy.

His appointment as Foreign Secretary, announced on August 31, was, however, mired in controversy as he superseded more than 15 officers and Mr Rajiv Sikri, Secretary (East), sought voluntary retirement in protest.

Mr Sikri was the senior-most officer after Mr Saran.

UNI