NEW DELHI: India on Friday rejected Pakistan's allegations of supporting terrorism in connection with the Balochistan train attack, advising Islamabad to reflect on its shortcomings instead of blaming others for its failures.
New Delhi also said that the whole world knows "where the epicentre of global terrorism lies."
The Indian response came after Pakistan on Thursday accused India of "sponsoring terrorism" without directly implicating it in the Balochistan train hijack that killed 21 passengers.
"We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, responding to media queries on Islamabad's allegations.
He went on to say: "The whole world knows where the epicentre of global terrorism lies. Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its internal problems and failures on others."
At a weekly press briefing, Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson, Shafqat Ali Khan, was asked several questions regarding the deadly attack on Tuesday, which resulted in a hostage situation lasting over 24 hours.
He said that terrorists had been in direct communication with planners based in Afghanistan throughout the incident. Khan also emphasised that Islamabad has consistently urged Afghanistan to prevent its soil from being used by terrorist groups, such as the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), to carry out attacks against Pakistan.
"We urge Afghanistan to hold the perpetrators, organisers and financiers, of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and cooperate with the government of Pakistan to bring all those who are concerned with this attack, including the real sponsors of terrorism, to justice," Khan had said.
When asked about a potential policy change, given that India was previously blamed for activities by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) while this time Afghanistan was held responsible, the spokesperson stated that there was no change in the policy.
"There is no shift in our policy. And again, the facts have not changed. India is involved in sponsoring terrorism against Pakistan," the spokesperson alleged without providing any evidence."
