Pakistan on Tuesday stuck to its known stand that Dawood Ibrahim, wanted both by India and the US, does not live in Pakistan amid conflicting reports about the fate of the underworld don.
Pakistan Interior Ministry reiterated Islamabad's position while officially denying reports of Dawood's arrest by the Inter Services Intelligence in Quetta.
"Nobody by the name Dawood Ibrahim has been arrested by the security forces," Pakistan Interior Ministry spokesperson Brig (retd) Iqbal Cheema told a media briefing in Islamabad while responding to a question on the whereabouts of the don.
"He is not in Pakistan and there is no truth in reports of his arrest in Quetta," Cheema said.
"There is nobody by that name who has been arrested by anybody here. We have reasons to believe he is not in this country. There is absolutely no credence, no truth to the report. We do not know where this report has come from," he said.
"If anyone has any evidence of his presence in Pakistan, we will welcome that. But he is an Indian national, the United Nations lists him as an Indian, and he should be looked for in India. As far as my knowledge goes, he is not in Pakistan," the spokesman said.
Pakistan in the past even denied any passport existed in the name of Dawood Ibrahim when US had forwarded details of his passport and address.
Before the reports of injury as well as his detention came into public domain, a Pakistan daily had reported that US pressured Pakistan to arrest Dawood who has been declared wanted by Washington for his involvement in narcotics smuggling and links with Al Qaeda related Islamist extremist groups.
The News said the FBI and the US Drug Enforcement Authority had approached the ISI, the Federal Investigation Agencyand the Anti-Narcotic Force of Pakistan to locate the whereabouts of Dawood.
Cheema has reiterated the government's resolve to root out extremism and terrorism from the society with the help of the peace loving people of the country.
Replying to a question on frequent suicide attacks, he said the government is aware about the perpetrators of these crimes and that they would be brought to justice sooner than later.
The spokesman said authorities have found some useful clues with regard to two suicide bomb attacks in Islamabad.
To a question, he said they are definitely looking at involvement of foreign hand as far as these acts of terrorism and suicide bombings are concerned.
