India said it will seek to reshape ties with Pakistan depending on its sincerity in acting against terror groups operating from its soil. "My Government will seek to reshape our relationship with Pakistan depending on the sincerity of Pakistan’s actions to confront groups who launch terrorist attacks against India from its territory," President Pratibha Patil said in her maiden address to the joint sitting of Parliament on June 4. She said that internal security will remain the thrust area of the government with zero-tolerance towards terrorism and will tackle it in a time-bound manner. Outlining the government’s approach towards dealing with security issues, the President said a National Counter-Terrorism Centre will be established to take pro-active measures to combat the menace. To ensure effective intelligence sharing, the Multi-Agency Centre will be strengthened and its subsidiaries will be activated in all states1.

Mohd Omar Madni, a top aide of Lashkar-e-Toiba founder Hafiz Saeed, who was arrested in New Delhi on June 4, had been asked by leaders of the terror outfit to recruit young people from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata for training in Pakistan. A Special Cell team arrested 50-year-old Madni from Qutub Minar area when he arrived to hand-over money to a contact for recruiting people for terror activities. Besides Hafiz, Madni was also in touch with other LeT key functionaries Zaki-ur-Rehman and Mohd Yakub who asked him to recruit two educated youngsters each from the four main metros for terror training2.

• 1. “Ties with Pak depends on action against terror: Prez”, Daily Excelsior, June 5, 2009, at http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/web1/09june05/news.htm#1
• 2. “LeT key operator Madni was asked to recruit Indian youth”, daily Excelsior, June 6, 2009, at http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/web1/09june06/news.htm#1