Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's recent offer to extradite Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar to India is widely regarded as a sham due to several critical factors: lack of power, credibility, trust, and institutional backing, making it appear more as a desperate diplomatic bluff than a substantive policy shift.

No Power

Bilawal Bhutto is currently not part of Pakistan’s government or cabinet and holds no executive authority. His statements, therefore, do not carry the weight of official policy and can be easily retracted or disavowed by the actual power centers in Pakistan, namely the military and the sitting government. Analysts point out that figures like Bhutto are often used by the establishment to float trial balloons or issue statements that can be walked back without consequence.

No Credibility

Pakistan has a long history of reneging on peace gestures and international commitments. India has repeatedly faced betrayals at crucial moments, from the 1947-48 invasion of Kashmir to the 2008 Mumbai attacks and beyond. Offers of cooperation or extradition have often been accompanied by delays, procedural hurdles, or outright denials, undermining any credibility such statements might have.

No Trust

Decades of Pakistan-backed terrorism and broken promises have eroded any remaining trust between the two countries. India has provided extensive evidence and dossiers on the involvement of Pakistan-based terrorists in attacks on Indian soil, but Islamabad has consistently failed to take meaningful action, often citing procedural or legal obstacles.

Just a Desperate Bluff

The timing of Bhutto’s offer is notable. It comes immediately after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a move that threatens Pakistan’s agricultural and economic stability. This context suggests the extradition offer is a reactive, tactical maneuver aimed at defusing pressure and regaining leverage in bilateral talks, rather than a genuine attempt to address terrorism. The offer is also deliberately ambiguous and contingent on Indian "cooperation," allowing Pakistan to shift blame for any lack of progress back onto India.

Institutional Reality

Even if there were political will, the cases against Saeed and Azhar in Pakistan are currently for domestic offenses like terror financing, not for their roles in attacks against India. Bhutto himself has blamed India for "non-compliance" in providing evidence or witnesses, a well-worn justification for inaction. Furthermore, Pakistan claims it does not know Azhar’s whereabouts, further eroding the plausibility of any extradition.

Conclusion

Given these factors, Bhutto’s extradition overture is widely dismissed as lacking substance—a diplomatic decoy rather than a credible offer. Without official backing, transparency, or a proven crackdown on terror infrastructure, India and the international community have little reason to take such statements seriously.

Based On TOI Report