The man who handled the Jaish-e-Muhammed terror squad which attacked the Pathankot air base in January was reportedly let off by the Manmohan Singh government in 2010 as a "goodwill gesture" to mend ties with Pakistan, according to The Times of India. Shahid Latif was among 25 militants who were freed by the United Progressive Alliance government. He had spent almost 11 years in prison on charges of being involved in militant activities before being released.
According to the report, Latif was on the list of militants that Jaish wanted freed, along with their chief Maulana Masood Azhar in December 1999. They were successful in securing Azhar's release after hijacking Indian Airlines flight IC-814, but the then Atal Bihari Vajpayee government refused to release Latif and others.
The National Investigation Agency is looking for the 47-year-old for his role as a handler of four terrorists involved in the January 1 attack. The Indian agency has also approached Pakistan seeking DNA samples of all four suspected terrorists that were involved in the attack, along with that of Latif's. The second Letter Rogatory to Pakistan was sent three days ago, though Delhi is yet to receive a reply to the first LR – a formal letter sent by an Indian court to the Pakistani court seeking judicial help in the investigation.
The NIA has also reached out to Islamabad, requesting a visit to Pakistan to record statement of suspects including Azhar and his brothers, reported The Indian Express.
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