Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif. (AP) Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif. (AP)

Contradicting Pakistan’s continuous denial of its role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday implicitly admitted that militant organisations which are active in the country were behind the dreadful terror strikes which claimed 166 lives.

While responding to a question on national security in an exclusive interview with Dawn, Sharif asked why Pakistan was unable to complete the trial in the case even after nine years. “Militant organisations are active. Call them non-state actors, should we allow them to cross the border and kill 150 people in Mumbai? Explain it to me. Why can’t we complete the trial?” he said.

Read | 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case: Pakistan removes chief prosecutor for ‘not taking govt line’

Ten Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists had sailed into Mumbai from Karachi and carried out coordinated attacks, killing 166 people and injuring over 300 in November 2008. Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafeez Saeed is the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. The outfit was declared as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US in June 2014.

The case has entered into the 10th year but none of its suspects in Pakistan has been punished yet, showing that the case had never been in the priority list of the country that appears to be keen to put it under the carpet.

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