Pakistani students pay homage to Mumbai terror victims

Lucknow, Dec 2 : Pakistani students who are in Lucknow on a goodwill visit, paid obeisance to victims, the brave commandoes and security personnel who laid their lives in fighting militants in the recent terror attacks in Mumbai.

Perturbed with the souring relations between India and Pakistan, the students condemned the attacks and said that Indians and Pakistanis should fight terrorism together.

"If something bad happens to the people of India, we feel as if it's happening to our people because we belong to the same land and culture. So, we have the same feelings for people of both the countries. So, we want that both the countries should remain united and appreciate diversity, live with pluralism and there should not be any differences on this basis," said Syed Hasan Adil, a Pakistani student.

Relations between India and Pakistan were improving specially after the installation of the civil government in Pakistan about eight months ago.

But, with New Delhi getting tougher with Islamabad over the links of Pakistani elements in Mumbai terror strikes and Pakistan threatening to remove its troops from the western frontier and placing them on the India Pakistan border has again turned the relations bitter between the two nuclear powered countries.

Pakistani nationals blame it on the anti-social elements who do not want India and Pakistan friendship to prosper. I feel that whenever Pakistan and India's friendship is in news and any new development starts, something wrong like this happens. I feel that this is an attempt by some people who want that no friendship should develop between the two countries. This issue can be solved only when the students will make visits of universities in each other's country, share their views, knowledge, get a chance to meet new people," said Mohammed Shaad Mardani, a teacher from Pakistan.

The situation seemed to improve as the two countries had allowed cross border trade, but the recent turn of events with Mumbai terror strike links being traced to Pakistan, the situation has changed.

The three-day terrorist attacks in Mumbai, which began on Wednesday killed at least 197 people and left nearly 300 wounded.

ANI