India denies Pakistan's report on Indian involvement in terror attacks

by Wu Qiang, Jit Kumar

NEW DELHI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- India Thursday denied a report by a leading Pakistani newspaper that New Delhi has received a dossier from Islamabad on India's alleged role in unrest in Pakistan's Balochistan province and terror attacks on Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore in March.

Indian Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor said that India has not received any such dossier from Pakistan, which blames the country's intelligence agents for involvement in Pakistan's internal affairs to destabilize the neighboring country.

"India has no role in Pakistan's internal matters. India is not interested in destabilizing Pakistan. It is a propaganda by the media in Pakistan," Tharoor told the media in the national capital.

The Dawn newspaper of Pakistan said on Wednesday Pakistan has handed over to India a dossier allegedly containing "comprehensive evidence" of Indian involvement in several terrorist acts on its soil, including the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team.

The dossier with proof of "India's involvement in subversive activities in Pakistan" was handed over by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh during their recent meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, said the Dawn, quoting unnamed sources.

Earlier, some other Indian government officials denied the report detailing Indian involvement in the country's Balochistan province.

"The accusation of the involvement of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in terrorist activities in Pakistan, including the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore last March and on a police academy on the outskirts of the city, is absurd," said the officials on condition of anonymity.

The RAW is the top intelligence agency of the government of India.

These officials also challenged Pakistan to hand over relevant dossier to India to support its accusation.

"This report is totally fabricated. No dossier was handed over to India by the Pakistan side, except the one detailing the steps taken on the Mumbai terror attacks. There is no question of any Indian involvement in Pakistan," the officials said.

The Dawn newspaper also said the dossier included a description of Indian arms and explosives used in the attack on the Sri Lankanteam on March 3, in which several Pakistani policemen were killed.

Pakistani officials, including former President Pervez Musharraf, have in the past also accused India of involvement in the unrest in Pakistan's Balochistan province over the past several years.

Several policemen were killed during the terrorist attack on the Manawan police academy in Lahore on March 30.