India won't buckle under dastardly attacks: Minister Naqvi

Lucknow, Jan 2  The government will not buckle under terrorist acts, union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Saturday, in the wake of the attack at the Indian Air Force base in Punjab's Pathankot town.

The minister of state for parliamentary affairs, while on a visit to Rampur, said the recent stopover by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Lahore to wish his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on his birthday was a goodwill gesture.

"We have always wanted cordial and friendly relations with all our neighbours but there can be no compromise on national security and issues like terrorism," he said.

Claiming that the Pathankot attack was a "sign of frustration and despondency" on part of terror groups, the minister said the day was not far when Pakistan will have to hand over fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Sayeed to India.

Naqvi praised Indian Muslims, saying they had not accepted the ideology of the Islamic State militant group, because of which the dreaded organisation has not found base in India.

He also said the union government has given Rs.330 crore to the state for the welfare of Muslims.