India calls Pakistan’s Masood Azhar reward hike a ‘gimmick’, says take action instead
PTC Web Desk: The Indian government has dismissed Pakistan’s decision to increase the reward for information leading to the arrest of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar, calling it a publicity move with little meaning.
At its regular media briefing on Tuesday, the Ministry of External Affairs said Pakistan had made similar announcements in the past without taking meaningful action.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said such statements from Pakistan were not new and described the latest announcement as another “gimmick”.
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He said instead of making what India termed hollow announcements, Pakistan should take concrete action against terrorists.
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has reportedly included Masood Azhar in its 2026 Red Book of high-profile wanted terrorists. Reports citing intelligence sources said the reward for information on him has been increased by PKR 20 lakh, taking the total to PKR 70 lakh, or around Rs 24 lakh.
The FIA had first announced a reward for Azhar in 2021.
Azhar was declared a global terrorist by the United Nations Security Council in May 2019 after China ended its long-standing technical hold on the designation. The United States has separately announced a reward of $10 million for information leading to his capture.
Why Pakistan’s move matters
The development comes ahead of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) plenary scheduled for October. Pakistan was removed from the FATF grey list in October 2022. The country has continued to face international scrutiny over its actions against UN-designated terrorists and terror financing.
Where Is Masood Azhar?
The exact whereabouts of Masood Azhar remain disputed. Pakistan has maintained since 2021 that Azhar is not in the country and has claimed that he crossed into Afghanistan. India has rejected this claim. The Jaish-e-Mohammed chief has remained a major security concern for India for decades.
During Operation Sindoor in May 2025, launched following the Pahalgam Terror Attack, Indian armed forces said they had targeted JeM's Markaz Subhanallah facility in Bahawalpur, Pakistan.
Azhar later claimed that several members of his family and people close to him were killed in the strike.
How Masood Azhar was released from India
Azhar was serving time in an Indian jail when he was released in December 1999 as part of a deal to secure the release of passengers and crew members of Indian Airlines flight IC-814.
The aircraft had been hijacked after taking off from Kathmandu and was eventually flown to Kandahar, which was then under Taliban control.
After his release, Azhar founded Jaish-e-Mohammed in 2000.
The organisation has been linked to several major attacks in India, including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 2016 Pathankot airbase attack and the 2019 Pulwama bombing.
- With inputs from agencies
