Where is Masood Azhar?

Let us address the elephant in the room: Where is Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar?

As our foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale said, the target of the pre-emptive strike was Maulana Yusuf Azhar alias Ustad Ghuri — Masood Azhar's brother-in-law — who was leading a terror camp in Balakot; probably the biggest training camp.

But of course, India's target isn't just Yusuf Azhar.

We want Masood Azhar, the mastermind of all the JeM attacks which took place in the recent past, a terrorist who was released in 1999 from India's custody in exchange of defenceless hostages on IC-814, hijacked by JeM.

Yusuf Azhar was one of the masterminds of the Kandahar hijack, which he plotted after all plans to free Masood Azhar from jail were failing.

Still, our target is Masood Azhar — who is yet not listed as a 'global terrorist' by the United Nations Security Council, thanks to Pakistan's all-weather friend China.

Where is he?

Pakistan has throughout denied its links with JeM and Masood Azhar.

However, according to reports, Masood Azhar was in Rawalpindi military hospital while a JeM suicide bomber attacked a CRPF convoy on February 14.

Soon after the attack, he was shifted to a highly protected facility near Bahawalpur — a possible meeting between Masood Azhar and Hizbul chief Syed Salahuddin was also predicted.

Meanwhile, there was a twist.

Following the Pulwama attack, Pakistan came under global condemnation. The country, which has always denied its whole-hearted sponsorship to terrorism, suddenly swung into action and on February 22, it claimed that the Punjab government took administrative control of a few terror units, including Jama-e-Masjid Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur.

Bahawalpur is the birthplace of Maulana Masood Azhar. The 50-year-old terrorist, after his various stints at home and abroad, is now based out Bahawalpur.

JeM (it's a big secret to Pakistan) currently operates from here under various garbs.

Like the Al Rahmat Trust.

When JeM was proscribed by the United Nations in 2002, Masood Azhar started this Trust — which has been raising funds for JeM.

This same charity raised funds for setting up of the Jama-e-Masjid Subhan Allah, a mosque situated close to NH-5, Pakistan's longest highway. Apparently, Masood Azhar is planning to use this mosque as his new location.

"The government of Punjab has taken over the control of a campus comprising Madressatul Sabir and Jama-e-Masjid Subhanallah in Bahawalpur, allegedly the headquarters of Jaish-e-Mohammad, and appointed an administrator to manage its affairs," said Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan's information minister, on February 22.

Seriously? Was he talking about the same Jama-e-Masjid Subhanallah?

Of course not!

A day after, in a massive U-turn, the government said that the unit was a simple seminary with no link to terror. They also took a group of local journalists to witness how it was just a seminary with teachers and students.

Bahawalpur has already become the second Abbottabad (Osama bin Laden's den) in Pakistan — and, according to reports, Masood Azhar's hideout is within 8-9 km from Pakistan Army's 31 Core Headquarters.

So, where is Masood Azhar? 

In the safe custody of the Pakistan army.

Also Read: India Strikes Back: All you need to know