New Delhi: Criticising Pakistan for failing to contain extremist groups, an influential US Congressman on Tuesday asked it to either hand over Mumbai attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi to India or to the International Criminal Court at The Hague for crimes against humanity.

Identifying terrorism as a major threat in the region, US House foreign affairs committee chairman Ed Royce criticised Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, saying there was a need to strengthen Pakistan’s civilian government and to dissuade the ISI from the kind of conduct it was engaged in. Mr Royce added “certain families in Gulf states” were funding 600 Deobandi schools in Pakistan that was a major cause of concern.

Without naming Lakhvi, Mr Royce, who is visiting India as head of a bipartisan US congressional delegation, said Pakistan must bring to justice Lashkar-e-Tay-yaba terrorists involved in the 26/11 Mumbai attack and also wondered how Lakhvi was being allowed to meet visitors. Mr Royce also called on the Prime Minister and home minister.