Musharraf lied about Dawood: Advani

At a time when there is strong buzz that Pakistan double-crossed the US on Osama bin Laden, senior BJP leader LK Advani has accused former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf of “lying” about the whereabouts of Dawood Ibrahim.

At a time when there is strong buzz that Pakistan double-crossed the US on Osama bin Laden, senior BJP leader LK Advani has accused former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf of “lying” about the whereabouts of Dawood Ibrahim. The general’s statement on Dawood was made during his visit to India to attend the Agra Summit in 2001.

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Advani also quotes strategic expert Brahma Chellaney saying the US policy on Pakistan has “inadvertently made the country the world’s main terrorist sanctuary”.

Saying he suggested Vajpayee to invite Musharraf for the summit, Advani wrote on his blog on Sunday that a Pakistani official told him about Musharraf’s “white lie” after he called on the visiting Pakistani president.

Stating he suggested to Musharraf that India and Pakistan have an extradition treaty, Advani recalls his words to the general, “Even before we conclude a formal extradition treaty, you would be making a great contribution to the peace process if you handed over to India Dawood Ibrahim, who is the prime accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case and who lives in Karachi.”

Musharraf’s face “suddenly turned red and unfriendly”, Advani says, and he replied, “Now, Mr Advani, that is small tactics... let me tell you emphatically Dawood is not in Pakistan.”

“Later, one of the Pakistani officials, told me, ‘What our President said about Dawood on that day was a white lie’,” Advani adds.