ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI (Islamweb & News Agencies) - Pakistan has detained a second militant leader opposed to India's rule in Kashmir as the nuclear-armed neighbors stage their biggest military buildup in almost 15 years.
With India's cabinet security committee due to meet on Monday, the Press Trust of India (PTI) quoted Indian Defense Minister George Fernandes as again accusing Pakistan of failing to do enough to crush the militants.
But Fernandes did not refer specifically to the latest detention and it was unclear whether this gesture from Pakistan would be enough to placate Indian anger at a bloody December 13 attack on its national parliament in New Delhi.
India blames Pakistan for supporting the militant groups accused of the attack.
Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, former leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group fighting India's rule in the disputed Kashmir region, was detained Sunday night after chairing a meeting of his colleagues in the capital Islamabad, a security source said.
A Lashkar party official confirmed he was in custody and the group's Web site carried a defiant message: ``Hafiz Mohammad Saeed was arrested by the government of Pakistan in connection with the American campaign against Islam and Jihad.''
But there was no official announcement in Pakistan that Saeed, a Pakistani national, had been arrested or what charges he might face. The security source said he was detained for making anti-government statements.
In the divided and disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, India said one of its soldiers had been killed and five wounded in an overnight exchange across a volatile cease-fire line.
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said Sunday his country wanted peace with India, its traditional rival with which it has fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947.
``Pakistan wants to reduce tensions. Pakistan wants to de-escalate. Let the relationship between India and Pakistan move toward peace and harmony,'' Musharraf told reporters, adding he was addressing his remarks to the people of India.
``Having said that, Pakistan has taken all counter-measures,'' he added. ``If any war is thrust on Pakistan, Pakistan's armed forces and 140 million people of Pakistan are fully prepared to face all consequences with all their might.''
Both India and Pakistan have said that they do not want a fresh conflict but despite intense U.S. diplomatic pressure, both governments, mindful of domestic pressures, have taken pains to show firmness and resolve in the face of the traditional enemy.
Pakistan earlier detained Maulana Azhar Masood, head of Jaish-e-Mohammad, the second group India blames for the December 13 attack that killed 14 people, including the five assailants.
India has rejected a demand from Pakistan that it provide evidence to back its accusations. Both groups deny involvement.