New Delhi:
India on Friday said that some countries have proposed to put Pakistan in the "grey list" of an international task force mandated to combat terror funding and money laundering.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is meeting later this month in Paris, where it is expected to deliberate extensively on containing the spread of terrorism by choking the funding channels of terrorist groups.
"There is a proposal by some countries, as a part of the FATF process, to put Pakistan in the grey list. The grey listing happens because the commitment which was given by Pakistan on actions it was supposed to take, that has not happened," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.
He was responding to a question on whether India is going to make any specific case against 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed at the FATF meeting.
Kumar said India has shared its views with the countries and members of the FATF on this matter.
The US has also approached the FATF to put Pakistan on global terrorist-financing watch list, accusing Islamabad of not complying with the UN Security Council resolutions relating to terror groups, including al-Qaeda and its affiliates.
The FATF is an inter-governmental body, which maintains "grey" and "black" lists to identify countries with weak measures to combat money laundering and terror financing. Inclusion in the grey list can lead to sanctions.
Kumar said India believes that the UNSC Resolution 1267 sanctions pertaining to money laundering and terror financing must be implemented in letter and spirit by all nations.
"...And those nationals and nations, who are found wanting in implementing in their obligations and freely allowing the UN-designated terrorists and individuals to operate and raise funds, and have access to assets for the nefarious activities must be held accountable and subjected to appropriate action," he said.
Responding to a question on reports of Pakistan amending its anti-terror laws to include Hafiz Saeed-linked Jamaat-ud-Dawa on the list of UN proscribed groups, Kumar said it needs to be seen whether Islamabad is willing to "walk the talk".
He said it is "quite surprising" that it took 10 years for Pakistan to figure out that Saeed, the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, is a terrorist.
"In any case, I think, the timing of such declaration of Hafiz Saeed as a terrorist is a very suspect. You will have to see if they are willing to walk the talk and take concrete measures against terrorists and terror outfits which have been operating from the soil of Pakistan," he said.
Earlier this week, Pakistan launched a crackdown on seminaries and health facilities run by Saeed.
In response to a question on the ceasefire violations by Pakistan, Kumar said India takes counter actions on such violations, wherever it is initiated.
Asked about the government's plan to bring back industrialists involved in money laundering cases, an apparent reference to diamantaire Nirav Modi fleeing the country amid an alleged multi-million dollar scam, Kumar said: "I dont think today every question has to be linked to what questions which have come up earlier."
