ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Special Re­­presentative on Afghanistan Ambassador Asif Durrani has said Islamabad has evidence that the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is getting money from India through Afghan proxies, estimating that 5,000 to 6,000 TTP militants have taken shelter in Afghanistan.

“If we include their families, then the number goes up to 70,000,” Mr Durrani said on Saturday while speaking at a programme hosted by an Islamabad-based think tank on the Afghan peace process.

Consultation on “Afghan peace and reconciliation: Pakistan’s interests and policy options” was the 12th one in a series of discussions organised by the Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS).

Ambassador Durrani said Pakistan’s peace talks with the banned TTP failed in the past because the militant group was neither ready to surrender nor swear allegiance to the Constitution of Pakistan. The special envoy said it was apparent someone else was paying for their upkeep as the interim Afghan government could not afford the per-day expenditure of such a large number of people.

The third primary reason for the deadlock in talks was that the group didn’t want to face law for the heinous crimes it committed, including the attack on the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar, he added.

Ambassador Durrani said Pakistan, during talks, had told the interim government in Kabul that the latter needed to make TTP surrender and disarm the group and detain its leadership. He clarified that “TTP is the red line for Pakistan”.

Referring to the Pakistan-Afghan border crossing issue, the envoy said Islamabad should implement the one-document regime on all border crossings with Afghanistan.