Former Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf on Monday said his government had succeeded in bringing India to the negotiating table even on matters that Delhi was not willing to discuss, Pakistani TV channel Dunya News reported. The former strongman said he realised a “political process was required to negotiate with India” after he had “managed freedom fighters in Kashmir”, reported PTI.

Mushaffar condemned Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief and Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed’s house arrest. “Hafiz Saeed is not a terrorist. It should be established as he runs a very large charity,” he said. “They [Saeed’s organisation] contributed to relief activities during the post-earthquake and post flood period in Pakistan.” The former president, however, said Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar was a “terrorist” who was working against Pakistan.

Azhar is also wanted by India for his involvement in the Parliament attack case and the bomb blast at the Srinagar Assembly in 2001. India had released him after an Indian Airlines flight was hijacked in Kandahar in 2001.

On military operation Zarb-e-Azb, Musharraf said, “This operation cleaned up all the camps and launching pads of terrorists, who were supported by the Indian spy agency with the collaboration of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security to destabilise the tribal areas.”

Musharraf said he did not agree with “pseudo liberals who think giving up the Kashmir cause” will improve bilateral ties with India. “All our water flows from rivers located in Kashmir,” he said. “India has adopted an aggressive strategy and it needs to be fought with an counter aggressive strategy.”