Pulwama attack: Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar should meet Osama’s fate, says Ramdev

Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Hafiz Saeed should be brought to India or should meet the fate of Osama bin Laden, Yoga guru Ramdev said Friday, while seeking strong action against Pakistan.

Describing Thursday’s strike on a CRPF convoy in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama by Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed, in which 40 soldiers of the force were killed, an attack on the “unity, integrity and sovereignty” of India, he said time has come to merge Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) with India.

“All terrorists, whether coming from across the border or already inside our territory, must be eliminated, especially (2008 Mumbai terror attack mastermind) Hafiz Saeed and (Jaish-e-Mohammad chief) Masood Azhar.

“Wherever they are, they must be brought to India or should meet the fate of Osama bin Laden (who was killed by US forces inside his secret residence in Pakistan’s Abbotabad),” Ramdev said on sidelines of an event here.

He said the terror camps operational in PoK must be destroyed, and if possible the region should be merged back into India.

“Pakistan is behaving like an immature, stupid and uneducated country. So, the Indian prime minister must now take a major step to teach Pakistan a lesson with some action,” the yoga guru said.

“Modiji should at least say that Masood Azhar and Hafiz Saeed will not remain alive whatever strategy has to be used for it….. this is the responsibility of the government,” Ramdev said.

Forty CRPF personnel were killed and five injured on Thursday in one of the deadliest terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir when a Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad suicide bomber rammed a vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives into their bus in Pulwama district.

Ramdev said, “We often say that we will avenge the killings of our martyrs and offer a lot of lip service and engage in verbal wars. But they (verbal wars and lip service) are no more effective.” “The prime minister must now take a major action and the entire country should back him. No cheap politics should come in the way of the action because now it is about India’s unity, integrity and sovereignty,” he said.

Ramdev said it was now time to move beyond surgical strikes and all terror camps in PoK must be destroyed.

“We should not be scared by the thought that Pakistan has nuclear weapons. India too is equipped with nuclear weapons. But it is not about nuclear weapons, this is a question on our bravery and sovereignty.

“We think thousands of crores would be lost in finance in a fight, but whatever be the expenses, there should be decisive action for once,” he said.

Asked about reports of intelligence failure that might have led to the attack, Ramdev said whenever a major incident occurs there are no doubt of some shortcomings but this is not the time for criticism, but action. “It is time to ensure that such events are not repeated. I reiterate that each terrorist should be hunted down and eliminated,” Ramdev said.

About Congress leader and Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu visiting Pakistan last year, Ramdev said Indian leaders have visited the neighbouring country with an intention to establish better relationship with it.

“Be it the prime minister or the foreign minister, all leaders have tried to improve ties with Pakistan. But good relations are not possible because Pakistan has expressed that it does not want good ties,” he said.

More than 2,500 Central Reserve Police Force personnel, many of them returning from leave to rejoin duty in the Valley, were travelling in the convoy of 78 vehicles when they were ambushed on the Srinagar-Jammu highway at Latoomode in Awantipora in south Kashmir.

Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed terror group had claimed the responsibility of the attack that took place just 20 km from Srinagar.