On Friday, India firmly dismissed Pakistan’s allegations of "sponsoring terrorism," stating that the world knows the absolute "epicentre of global terrorism." This response followed Islamabad’s claim that India was backing terror activities, though it did not explicitly connect India to the recent Balochistan train attack that killed 21 passengers.

"We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan. The whole world knows where the epicentre of global terrorism lies," Randhir Jaiswal, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, stated. "Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures onto others."

After a deadly attack on the Jaffar Express on Tuesday, which resulted in a hostage crisis lasting more than 24 hours, Pakistan levelled fresh allegations. While it has frequently accused India of supporting Baloch separatist groups, this time, Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan attributed the attack's coordination to Afghanistan. "There is no shift in our policy. And again, the facts have not changed. India is involved in sponsoring terrorism against Pakistan," Khan urged. "What I was referring to was, in this particular incident, we have evidence of calls being traced to Afghanistan. This is what I said."

Khan accused India of carrying out a "global assassination campaign" and destabilising neighbouring countries. He also criticised Indian media, alleging that it was "glorifying the BLA," referring to the Balochistan Liberation Army, which Pakistan considers a terrorist organisation. Meanwhile, a Pakistani spokesperson called on Afghanistan to take responsibility, claiming that the attackers were in direct contact with "Afghanistan-based planners throughout the incident." He urged Kabul to prevent its territory from being used by militant groups targeting Pakistan.

"We urge Afghanistan to hold the perpetrators, organisers, and financiers of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and cooperate with the government of Pakistan to bring all those who are concerned with this attack, including the real sponsors of terrorism, to justice," he stated.

The Taliban quickly denied Pakistan’s allegations. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, rejected any involvement and urged Pakistan to address its security issues instead of making "irresponsible remarks." Apart from the terrorism-related accusations, Pakistan reaffirmed its position on Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders, stating that the March 31 deadline for their departure remained unaffected.

"We had a special provision regarding Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC). They were also given some extraordinary relaxation. It was a step that the government of Pakistan took by allowing them to stay, but it was not an indefinite leave to stay. Now, the government has decided that people with ACC should leave the country by March 31. Beyond that, they will be deemed illegal residents in Pakistan, and the law will take its course," as per Khan.