Islamabad: Pakistan may not seek consular access to Ajmal Amir Iman Kasab, the lone terrorist captured during the Mumbai attacks, despite acknowledging that he is its national as he has damaged the country's image "like no other," a media report said today.
"We are not yet sure when to ask for consular access. We may not ask for it. He is involved in a heinous crime," an unnamed senior official told Dawn newspaper.
The terrorist had damaged Pakistan "like no other," the official said when asked about the issue of Islamabad seeking consular access to Kasab following yesterday's admission by the government that he is a Pakistani national.
After being in constant denial mode, Pakistani officials, including Information Minister Sherry Rehman and Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Sadiq, yesterday finally admitted that Kasab is a Pakistani national.
Kasab has written a letter to the Pakistan government asking that he be provided consular access and legal aid. Pakistani authorities had earlier said they were examining Kasab's request.
An unnamed "high-ranking government official" was quoted by Dawn as saying that the preliminary investigation had provided enough information to conclude that Kasab was "from a Punjab village (in Pakistan), and perhaps belonged to a militant group that was bent upon destabilising the region by undermining the (India-Pakistan) peace process".
The official said Pakistani authorities "were examining all parts of the puzzle on the basis of their own investigation, as well as the information provided by India and the Americans".
