The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday pledged full support to the UPA government in its fight against terror but with a few riders and said a consensus should be built before the government takes any major steps.

PM, team formulate response to Mumbai attack

"Given that Pakistan has totally rejected all requests of the government, we expect the government to assess the stern steps that are required to ensure that Pakistan desists from pursuing jihadi terrorism. As a nationalist party, the BJP shall stand by the government in the effective steps it takes in this regard," Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Jaswant Singh said told media persons.

Terming the Mumbai terror attacks [Images] as 'India challenged', BJP's core committee in its meeting said the terror challenge should be 'rebutted fully, visibly and tellingly'.

Coverage: Terror attacks in Mumbai

He was accompanied by senior BJP leader Arun Shourie.

"Consensus cannot be ex-post facto, it can arise only from consultations. There must, therefore, be a full and comprehensive sharing of facts," Singh said.

The BJP accused Pakistan of violating the January 6, 2004 accord between the two countries, which states that the country will not allow use of its soil for terror activities.

The ten conditions on which BJP has promised support to the UPA government include immediate suspension of 'peace process' with Pakistan, passing stern anti-terror laws, having uniform anti-terror laws throughout the country, sprucing up the intelligence machinery and setting up a federal investigative agency.

The BJP did not mince words in indicting that Pakistan was responsible for the frequent terror attacks on India.

"Unquestionably, Pakistan as the crucible of terrorism has by now become its principal exporter. BJP holds that India is not and cannot be made either the principal importer or a target of such an evil product," Singh said.

The BJP core committee observed that 48 terrorist attacks in 18 Indian cities have taken place in 2008 alone.

"If the violence unleashed by Maoists, ULFA and others is also taken into account then around 2,300 of our citizens have died on this account in the year 2007 alone," he said.

The party sought to blame the UPA government's policies for this.

Issuing a warning to Pakistan, Singh said, "The BJP, unambiguously, conveys to the Pakistan government that this road of confrontation chosen by them, after the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai, is a perilous road, a blind alley with no exit and must be avoided."
 
The saffron party also had a word for the US and NATO countries, warning them that Pakistan is attempting blackmail by insinuating that unless they toe its line, it may dilute the co-operation it is giving in the fight against terror.

"We hope that the US and NATO will see that each time they step in to bail Pakistan out, it only emboldens that country to continue its destructive course," Singh said.

Additional Reportage: PTI