Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday authorised the country’s Army to “decisively and comprehensively” respond to any action from India. Khan said this during a meeting of the country’s top security body, the National Security Committee, Geo News reported.

The committee was discussing matters related to national security following last week’s terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama, which killed 40 Indian security forces personnel. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the strike, which has led to a strain in ties between the two countries.

In a statement issued after the meeting, the National Security Committee announced that Pakistan was “not involved in any way” in the Pulwama attack. “The incident was conceived, planned and executed indigenously,” the committee said, adding that Pakistan had offered to investigate the incident besides opening up a dialogues to discuss terrorism and other disputes.

“We expect India to positively respond to the offers. Based on the investigation or any tangible evidence provided, the state of Pakistan shall take action against anyone found using our soil,” the statement read.

However, the statement said, India needs “deep introspection to realise why people of IOK [the so-called India-occupied Kashmir] have lost fear of death”.

“The violence by Indian forces in IOK is highly counterproductive,” the statement alleged. “The global community needs to play its part in resolving the long pending Kashmir issue in accordance with UN resolutions and aspirations of the Kashmiris.”

Khan was quoted as saying: “This is a new Pakistan and we are determined to demonstrate to our people that the state is capable of protecting them and believes that monopoly of violence stays with state”. He also directed the government and security institutions to ensure “militancy and extremism are routed from the society and the state never becomes hostage to extremists”.

But at the same time, Khan reportedly said, Pakistani armed forces should “respond decisively and comprehensively to any aggression or misadventure by India”.

The Pakistan prime minister had on Tuesday claimed India had blamed Pakistan for the Pulwama attack without any evidence. He said he would take action if India has “actionable evidence”.

But India had said his claim that Pakistan will investigate the attack if proof is provided was a “lame excuse”. It said proof was provided to Pakistan following the terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008. “Despite this, the case has not progressed for the last more than 10 years,” the government said.

India said Khan had refused to condemn the Pulwama attack in his statement, nor did he offer his condolences to the families of the 40 Central Reserve Police Force who died.