India Slams Pakistan Over Masood Azhar Bounty
India has sharply criticised Pakistan’s decision to retain a PKR 7 million bounty on Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, dismissing the move as a “gimmick” and demanding concrete action against the UN-designated terrorist instead of what New Delhi described as symbolic announcements.
India Dismisses Pakistan’s Masood Azhar Bounty
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said such measures by Pakistan were “nothing new” and accused Islamabad of attempting to mislead the international community.
India maintains that meaningful counter-terrorism action would require Pakistan to apprehend and prosecute Azhar rather than merely list him as a fugitive and announce a monetary reward.
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency has retained Azhar in its 2026 Red Book of most-wanted terrorists, offering PKR 7 million, or 70 lakh Pakistani rupees, for information leading to his apprehension or conviction.
Masood Azhar Remains UN-Designated Terrorist
Azhar founded Jaish-e-Mohammed after his release from Indian custody during the 1999 IC-814 hijacking hostage crisis.
The United Nations designated him as a global terrorist in May 2019. India has linked Jaish-e-Mohammed to several major terrorist attacks, including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2016 Pathankot airbase attack and the 2019 Pulwama bombing that killed 40 CRPF personnel.
Pakistan Move Draws Fresh Scrutiny
India has repeatedly accused Pakistan of failing to take effective action against terrorist organisations and their leadership operating from its territory.
New Delhi’s latest response makes clear that it will assess Pakistan’s counter-terrorism commitments through arrests, prosecutions and enforcement rather than announcements of rewards or additions to wanted lists.
The bounty announcement has therefore renewed scrutiny of Pakistan’s handling of internationally designated terrorist figures.
