NEW DELHI, Dec 20: Terrorism, unless weeded out from the region completely, will keep South Asia trapped in a time warp, hobbling progress and sowing mistrust, delegates at a conference to celebrate Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen’s ideas were told here on Saturday.

The international conference, inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, became the first forum since the Mumbai terror nightmare to involve delegates from South Asia, including Pakistan, which was represented by rights activist Asma Jehangir.

“While discussing a ‘new’ South Asia, can we forget the plural character of the region?” asked Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

“India alone is home to every great religion in the world and we are proud of our secular and plural heritage. It is a heritage we will not abandon or forsake for it is the cornerstone of idea that is India. Security of all religious faiths is, thus, critical to the vision of a ‘new’ South Asia.”

That vision however needed physical protection to blossom freely. Mr Mukherjee recalled that only last month, India was held hostage to a dastardly terrorist attack in Mumbai.

“Across the globe, the faces of the terrorists have been seen. The deaths of the innocent people, the wanton loss of life and property, were not accidental or unintended as is sometimes referred to as collateral damage. On the other hand, this was cold and calculated murder.”

One of the suspected terrorists, who has been captured alive “has given us a chilling accounts of his handlers”. A few months earlier, the Indian embassy in Kabul was the target of a terrorist attack.

“The impunity with which these attacks are carried out is possible only because of the safety the handlers have been assured. For as long as this continues, we will remain mired in the ‘old’ South Asia.”

Separately, junior foreign minister A. Sharma said in Goa that India had solid evidence about the Mumbai attackers and asked Pakistan not to live in denial.

“India has irrefutable evidence about those involved in Mumbai terror attack and Pakistan cannot continue to live in a state of denial. It is in the interest of Pakistan and the security of the region that it responds to the UN Security Council Resolution and dismantles terror outfits operated by Lashkar-i-Taiba, Jamat-ud-Dawa and others,” he told United News of India.

He said: “It has a responsibility to bring to justice perpetrators and conspirators of Mumbai terror attack. If Pakistan fails to do so it will lose credibility as a nation state and will face isolation in the international community.”