Pakistan has accused Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) of orchestrating last month’s bomb explosion in Lahore - the capital city of Punjab province - aiming at a “high value target” and called upon the international community to take note.

On June 23, a powerful blast near the residence of proscribed Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed in Johar Town area of suburban Lahore had killed three people and injured 24 others, including a police constable.

"I want to make sure that our message is heard very clearly that this particular incident on 23rd of June in Lahore we have concrete evidence and intelligence including financial and telephone records that point to direct Indian sponsorship of these terrorists," Pakistan’s National Security Adviser (NSA) Dr Moeed Yousaf told a news conference.

Sharing details of the investigation, Moeed said Pakistan has identified the main mastermind and the handlers through "forensic analysis, electronic equipment which has been recovered from these terrorists."

"We have identified the main mastermind and the handlers of this terrorist attack and we have absolutely no doubt or reservation in informing you that the main mastermind belongs to RAW, the Indian intelligence agency, is an Indian national and is based in India," Moeed said, according to Pakistan’s prominent media outlet Express Tribune.

However, he did not name the “main mastermind”.

Prime Minister Imran Khan called upon the world community to take note of Indian “rogue behavior”.

The premier said planning and financing of this “heinous terror attack” have links to Indian sponsorship of terrorism against Pakistan.

“Global community must mobilise international institutions against this rogue behavior,” the premier twitted.

Moeed said there were “evidence of thousands of attempts” of cyber attacks against Pakistan’s critical investigative infrastructure right after the June 23 blast.

"These attacks and the number and sophistication in some cases leave no doubt the state sponsorship and state linkage in this case," Moeed added.

He claimed the attacks were being conducted as Pakistan’s ‘enemies’ wanted to buy time to deflect attention and to avoid the attention and capture of the terrorists.

The NSA alleged India had been using territory and people of "third countries" to carry out terrorist attacks in Pakistan, although he did not mention those countries by name.

Terror financing, made to execute the Lahore blast, links ‘were directly originating from India” where the money was transferred through third country to Pakistan, he claimed.

Moeed said “India state sponsorship of terrorism” in Pakistan was not new as the country in November last year presented a detailed dossier against New Delhi.

While commenting on the main suspect Eid Gul who parked the car in Johar Town, the NSA said the man was of Afghan origin and had been raised in Pakistan possessing a local national identity card being issued to Afghan refugees

Moeed said Prime Minister Imran Khan has instructed his team to use all possible political and legal means to get to the people outside Pakistan who were part of this international terrorist network.

"We are therefore sharing all the evidence with the international community and exposing the nefarious and real face of a state in our neighbourhood that has constantly sponsored terrorism against our innocent civilians,”

Echoing Moeed, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said  Pakistan would raise the issue of India "financing terror activities" in the country at the international level.

"We expect the international community to take notice of solid evidence provided by Pakistan about Indian involvement in Johar Town, Lahore terror incident," the foreign minister said in a statement.

The IG Punjab identified Peter Paul, a Pakistani, as the "linchpin" that connects this attack outside Pakistan.

The fresh spat came days after the drone attack on an Indian Air Force base in Jammu - which Indian media reports quoting security officials said traced its roots to Pakistan and its "terrorist proxies" - was the first ever drone strike  directed against an Indian military target.

The attack does not portend well for the prospects of long-term peace and stability in J&K, as it could herald the introduction of a serious force multiplier by Pakistan into an already volatile region, Indian security analysts were quoted as saying. 

The attack came almost immediately after an ice-breaking meeting that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on 24 June with all prominent mainstream political leaders of J&K in New Delhi to discuss steps to "restore the democratic process" in the union territory. (SAM)