Why Abdul Rauf Asghar is the most vicious terrorist of the Jaish-e-Mohammad

New Delhi, Mar 06: Pakistan on Tuesday said that it had detained Abdul Rauf Asghar and 44 others who are affiliated with the Jaish-e-Mohammad.

India said that the action amounts to an eye wash as Asghar, the brother of JeM chief, Maulana Masood Azhar was not detained under the provisions of an anti-terror law. India termed the detention as an eye-wash and protective in nature.

Since his release following the Kandahar hijack, the focus has been entirely on Masood Azhar. He has always remained the ideological head of the outfit. However it is his brother who ran the show and was fully in charge of the operations of the JeM.

Designating Asghar must be given equal preference by India as is being done in the case of Azhar, the experts feel. After all it is Asghar who has always been charge of the operations and he was the person who even plotted the IC-814 hijack.

Moreover Asghar shares a good rapport with the establishment in Pakistan. In fact in the year 2009, he was summoned by the establishment to Islamabad to help the government negotiate the release of 42 civilians who had been taken hostage.

While Azhar continued to be the ideological head of the outfit, it was Asghar who ran the operations. It was only for a brief while that he and his brother had a falling out with the establishment. This was due to a failed assassination bid on Pervez Musharraf. However once General Ashfaq Kayani took over as the Pakistan Army chief, both Asghar and Azhar were brought back to relevance in Pakistan. The duo struck a deal with the Pakistan army, following which they were back in business.

Rauf has been in the thick of the action for the JeM since the Kandahar hijack. A hardened terrorist who does not see beyond an anti India tirade, Rauf has been the backbone for Azhar.

He is systematic in his approach and extremely close to the Pakistan's ISI. Following the release of Azhar, the JeM regrouped and shortly after that Rauf plotted and executed the brutal attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001. Rauf according to officials has a great command over the cadres. He has been backed by the Pakistan army for long and has over the years turned out to be their most important proxy.

Asghar also played the lead role in plotting big attacks such as the one in Pathankot, Nagrota, Uri and Pulwama. He has played a big role in the outfit, both on the operation and ideological front after his brother was admitted to a hospital in Rawalpindi to undergo treatment for spinal cancer.