India hits back at UN report on Dawood Ibrahim, says human rights cannot shield terrorists

India once again took a firm and plain stand on terrorism at the UN General Assembly. It listed serious flaws, bias and ineffectiveness in a report presented by the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and expressed strong displeasure over it.

Indian diplomat Raghu Puri (IFS) directly questioned the impartiality of the officials who prepared the report. He said it was deeply regrettable that a report had been released by distorting facts. India also said the UN, as the largest global body, is expected to meet the highest standards of impartiality, and that a one-sided report therefore challenges the moral legitimacy of the organisation.

Puri specifically objected to what UN rapporteur Ben Saul's report recorded about Dawood Ibrahim and his gang, the D-Company. The report had described Dawood Ibrahim only as the "head of a criminal gang based in India". India launched a sharp attack on this.

Puri reminded the UN of its own earlier decisions. He said Dawood Ibrahim has been wanted in India for terror attacks since the 1993 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai. In 2003, the 1267 Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council listed Dawood Ibrahim and his D-Company for links with Al-Qaeda. This is clearly written in Security Council documents, yet the Special Rapporteur made no mention in the report of Dawood's anti-India terror activities. India called this regrettable and negligent. According to Puri, the report mentions that the D-Company chief was listed for Al-Qaeda links, but read alone, this gives a picture entirely different from the real situation.

Puri said Dawood lives in the same country where Osama bin Laden was found and killed. India also raised Pakistan's double standards on terrorism, saying Dawood lives safely in Pakistan. According to India, he enjoys state protection there. India warned plainly that failing to mention in the report that Dawood lives in Pakistan, and his crimes against India, amounts to shielding terrorism. The Indian representative said such incomplete and misleading work by special officials badly damages the UN's credibility.

India also voiced concern that countries that promote terrorism are misusing human rights and counter-terrorism frameworks to justify their actions and escape global pressure. Puri said human rights frameworks cannot become a haven for those who spread terror and those who promote radicalism and extremism. Terrorism can never be justified.

Pakistan's delegation, as usual, tried to raise the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in its statement. Puri called Pakistan's statement mere propaganda serving the narrow political interests of its real rulers, its army. India repeated in reply: "Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always remain an integral part of India." India also bluntly advised Pakistan to focus on dismantling the terror infrastructure in its own country instead of claiming other people's land.