'TRF a front of Lashkar-e-Taiba; will push for it to be listed as terror entity at UNSC': MEA

NEW DELHI: Ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Tuesday described The Resistance Front ( TRF ) as a "front" of the Lashkar-e-Taiba , adding that India would push to get the group designated as a terrorist entity by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

An offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar, TRF has carried out several terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir , including the one in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22.

"Over the last two years or so, we have been sharing information with the United Nations Security Council and the monitoring team of the Sanctions Committee as to why the The Resistance Front, a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba, should be listed as a terrorist entity. We will be also in few days time sharing more details in this regard. Hopefully, Security Council 1267 monitoring team will take strong note of what we present, what we file and take due action against what is required," Jaiswal told reporters at the ministry's weekly briefing.

The government will send a team for a meeting of UNSC's 1267 Sanctions Committee, scheduled to be held this week, to get TRF designated as a terrorist organisation, and impose sanctions and travel bans on its members.

The 1267 Sanctions Committee, also known as the ISIS and Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee, decides on sanction measures related to individuals, entities and groups, associated with the terror organisations, and ensures the implementation of sanctions pursuant to UNSC resolutions 1267, 1989 and 2253.

With the help of its "all-weather friend" China, a permanent member of the UNSC, Pakistan, a non-permanent member, was successful in blocking the mention of TRF's name in a UN statement following the Pahalgam terrorist attack.