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Pakistan Assembly for joint probe

Nirupama Subramanian

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's National Assembly on Tuesday passed a resolution condemning the attack on the Samjhauta Express as an act of terrorism and demanded a joint investigation into the incident, which claimed a large number of Pakistani lives.

The resolution was adopted unanimously. It called on India to help the victims, and asked the Pakistan Government to facilitate the bringing back of the injured and the bodies of the dead.

Delay

Making a statement in the Assembly, the lower House of Parliament, Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid complained about the delay on the Indian side in identifying the dead. He said he was given only 13 names whereas the number of Pakistanis killed was much higher.

The resolution, tabled by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sher Afghan Niazi, also asked the Railway Ministries of India and Pakistan to ensure safety of travel between the two countries.

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Khusro Bakhtiar told the National Assembly that the Indian authorities had conveyed to the Pakistan Government that the identities of 49 of the dead bodies were established, and that 22 of them were Pakistani.

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