China may back Azhar ban if Delhi resubmits plea: Swamy

Beijing, May 31 

The Sino-Indian deadlock over a UN ban on JeM chief Masood Azhar and others may end if India resubmits its application focussing on evidence against him than attempting to "censure" Pakistan, BJP MP Subramanian Swamy today said here after talks with Chinese officials.

"My impression is that India can expect cooperation from China on the issue of declaring Masood Azhar, leader of Jaish-e-Muhammad, as terrorist who should face trial in India, if India in the UN concentrated more on him than seeking to censure Pakistan as a sponsor of terror," he said.

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Swamy, who is here on a pilgrimage to Kailash-Mansarovar in Tibet, said he is visiting China in an individual capacity as an "old friend" but with the knowledge of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior ministers of his cabinet. The BJP leader said "as a tactical move it would (be) prudent (to) resubmit the complaint in UN which was blocked after China put a technical hold." "Based on what I learnt here, I will be very surprised if China continues to obstruct once it is limited to hard evidence," said Swamy after meeting Wang Guo Qing, Director of the foreign affairs committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee, and Wu Hailong, President of the Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs (CPIFA).

He said the application submitted by India in UN was more Pakistan-centric than Azhar. China, which previously blocked India's attempts to get a UN ban on Mumbai terror attack mastermind and LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, also put on hold listing of Azhar as global terrorist for his role in the Pathankot attack. — PTI