Time up for Pakistan's terror game, must hand over Hafiz Saeed & Masood Azhar: Rajnath from INS Vikrant

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said Pakistan should hand over UN designated terrorists Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar to India, if the western neighbour was serious about talks with India.

Addressing the personnel on board aircraft carrier INS Vikrant that was deployed in north Arabian Sea during Operation Sindoor, the defence minister said the mighty Carrier Battle Group ensured that the Pakistani Navy did not venture out, or else it would have faced the consequences.

“If Pakistan is serious about talks, it should hand over Hafiz Saeed (chief of Lashkar e Taiba) and Masood Azhar (who heads Jaish e Mohammed) to India so that justice is served. Both of them are not only in India’s list of ‘Most Wanted Terrorists’, they are also UN Designated Terrorists,” he said.

“Tahawwur Rana, an accused in the Mumbai attacks, has been brought to India recently. Hafiz Saeed is also guilty of the Mumbai attacks, and justice must be done for his crime,” Rajnath said.

During Operation Sindoor, Indian armed forces hit nine terror camps including the headquarters of LeT at Muridke and JeM at Bahawalpur, both are inside Punjab province of Pakistan.

Asserting that Operation Sindoor marks India's frontal assault against terrorism, the minister said, "We will use every method against terrorism that Pakistan can think of, but we will not hesitate to use those methods also which Pakistan can't even think of. It will be in Pakistan's interest to uproot the nurseries of terrorism operating on its soil with its own hands.”

The minister boarded the indigenous aircraft carrier and interacted with on-board personnel to appreciate the role they played silently during the conflict on the western front.

“Our mighty Carrier Battle Group, albeit silent, ensured that the Pakistani Navy did not venture out or else it would have faced the consequences,” the minister said.

While briefing the media on Operation Sindoor earlier in the month, Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, the director general of military operations said on the night of May 9-10, some “telling manoeuvres in the Arabian Sea” by the Indian Navy exerted pressure on the enemy.

It compelled the Pakistani Air Elements to remain bottled up close to the Makran coast, denying any opportunity to be a threat in maritime space.

“When the Indian Air Force destroyed terror bases on Pakistani soil, the Indian Navy's aggressive deployment in the Arabian Sea confined the Pakistani Navy to its own shores,” Rajnath said.