India has issued visa to five Pakistani officials to collect evidence in Pathankot terror attack probe. However, sources to ANI say that they would not have access the technical areas. The five member team which will include intelligence officials will also not be allowed to meet Gurdaspur SP Salwinder Singh.
The Joint Investigation Team will now arrive on 27 March and go to Pathankot the following day.
This will be the first time that Pakistani intelligence and police officials are travelling to India to investigate a terror attack. The team is expected to examine the weapons used in the attack, besides recording the statements of the victims, Pakistani media reports said.
Earlier, Pakistan had constituted a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) for the initial probe based on the leads provided by India. India had agreed to allow the Pakistani JIT to visit the Pathankot Air Base after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz in Kathmandu on the sidelines of SAARC Ministerial meeting on March 17.
India has been pressing Pakistan for action over the brazen assault on the key IAF base on January 2 in which seven Indian security personnel were killed. On February 18, Pakistan had lodged an FIR in connection with the Pathankot terror attack without naming JeM chief Masood Azhar who India has accused of having masterminded the strike.
(With inputs from PTI)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)