Mumbai, April 17: The horrendous attacks in Mumbai last year were aimed at destabilising India and capturing Kashmir and were supported by the Pakistan Army. This shocking revelation was made as the trial of the lone surviving terrorist Kasab began in a special court in Mumbai.
The prosecution charged Kasab with waging war against the country. The prosecution has charged Kasab with criminal conspiracy, waging war against nation and also under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Kasab has been made the prime accused in seven cases and a co-conspirator in five cases.
The prosecution, led by public prosecutor Ujwal Nikam, claimed that the handlers of the Mumbai attackers had asked them to specifically target American, British and Israeli citizens.
“His idea was to wage a war against India and capture Jammu & Kashmir,” Nikam maintained while pleading the special court to dismiss the arguments given by the defence counsel.
Building up his case, the public prosecutor also claimed the involvement of the Pakistani Army in the Mumbai carnage.
Public Prosecutor Ujwal Nikam said that Kasab in his confessional statement before the special court said a "major general" had visited them during their training organised by Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT).
"He disclosed that he got a special pat from the major general for coming first in shooting training and told others who were not up to par to practise more," Nikam told reporters after Friday's hearing in the case related to the terrorist strike.
Kasab retracts confession, alleges torture
Kasab wants to retract his confession, claiming it was extracted by torture, his defence lawyer, Abbas Kazmi has said.
"On his instruction, a retraction application has been filed, retracting the so-called alleged confession," said the lawyer, who is defending Pakistani national Kasab.
"He's going to plead not guilty," he added. He quoted Kasab as claiming he had been 'physically tortured'.
Earlier in court, Kasab’s lawyer said that his client had told him that he 'had not even reached the age of 17' when the attacks took place last November. "He is still under 18. In such circumstances he is deemed to be a juvenile and this court has no jurisdiction to try this case," Abbas Kazmi told the trial court.
The court, however, dismissed the accused application that claimed he was a ‘juvenile’.
Public prosecutor Ujwal Nikam rejected the Pakistani national’s submission, saying that in both Kasab's 'confession statement' to the police and on transfer to jail, he had said that he was 21.
"On the day of the incident, November 26, 2008, he had completed 21 years, two months and some 13 days," Nikam said.
"The main objective of conspirators in Mumbai terror attacks was to ultimately capture Jammu and Kashmir... Conspiracy of Mumbai terror attack case was hatched in Pakistan," Nikam added.
Judge ML Tahiliyani asked Kasab to stand in the dock and then commented, "As one looks at accused No 1, it does not appear that he is below 17 years."
Rejecting the application, the judge added, "In my considered opinion, the plea is frivolous and intended to delay the trial."
"I strongly objected and told the court that he was lying," said Nikam, pointing out that Kasab had described himself at 21 years of age at various events.
He said Colonel Sadatullah of the Pakistan government's Special Communications Organisation had accessed email accounts opened by the terrorist group in the fictitious name of Kharak Singh.
"What information he wanted to access and why is part of further investigation," Nikam said.
While reacting to the arguments made by the defence counsel, senior advocate Majid Mennon said, “Kasab can be subjected to an authorised medical practitioner for verification of his age.”
“If it is proved that Kasab is a juvenile, then cannot be awarded capital punishment and will be tried under the Juvenile Justice Act. This will change the entire course of his trial,” he maintained.
Earlier, Ujwal Nikam opened the arguments against Kasab, Faheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed for their alleged involvement in the 26/11 attack case in which 183 people were killed.
The Pakistani terrorist could be tried for at least 166 counts of murder, according to special public prosecutor Ujwal Nikam.
Kasab had earlier asked for a Pakistani lawyer to defend him after the special judge ML Tahiliyani removed Anjali Waghmare as his counsel on a complaint of professional misconduct.
Nikam told the special sessions court that Kasab is responsible for the murder of 166 persons who lost their lives in the three-day terror carnage on November 26 and thus the charge under Section 302 of IPC is required to be framed against him 166 times.
"Even though Kasab was actually not present at the time of the firing incidents in hotels Taj and Trident, and Nariman House, he can be held liable for the murders as one of the co-conspirators," Nikam said.
Kasab is currently lodged in a high-security special cell in the Arthur Road jail here where he is being guarded round the clock by a strong posse of nearly 300 special commandos of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
The trial is long awaited since the Mumbai police filed a voluminous charge sheet of over 11,000 pages.
I'll continue to raise my voice against anti-national forces: Varun
NEW DELHI: A day after getting a temporary relief from the Supreme Court in the "hate speech" case, BJP leader Varun Gandhi on Friday said he was
not in favour of violence as a tool in politics but would continue to raise his voice against "anti-national forces".
In a written statement circulated to media, he said the countrymen need to unite to face the threat of terrorism emanating from the neighbouring countries.
"Indians should unite to face the threat of terrorism (emanating from) neighbouring countries. We need to rise and face this menace boldly and I shall continue to raise my voice against anti-national forces," Varun said.
Varun was released on Thursday from Etah jail on parole for two weeks following a Supreme Court directive, almost 19 days after he was detained under the NSA for making hate speeches at election meetings in Pilibhit.
Varun had been released on parole to campaign for Lok Sabha polls with the condition that he would not indulge in any conduct likely to disturb communal harmony.
The 29-year-old BJP leader expressed happiness over relief provided by the Supreme Court and looked forward to be vindicated "fully" by the highest court in the case.
"I should also like to answer all the other false charges being levelled against me. Let me make it clear I do not and never have advocated violence as a tool in politics," he said.
Thanking BJP and others for their support, Varun said his immediate task was to form a government which will be in the "best interests" of India.
"History shows that my family has always been strengthened by times of adversity. I too am being tested and shall not be found wanting," he added.
MIM chief booked for assaulting TDP polling agent
Hyderabad, April 17: Police have registered a case against Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) President and sitting MP Asaduddin Owaisi for allegedly dragging a TDP polling agent from a booth and assaulting him with sticks.
During the Phase-I of polling for Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies yesterday, Owaisi, along with his supporters dragged TDP polling agent Salim from booth No 199 at Sultan Shahi in Old City and assaulted him by using sticks, Hyderabad City Commissioner of Police B Prasada Rao said.
The MIM chief is seeking re-election from Hyderabad Parliamentary constituency.
Owaisi has been charged under rioting, trespassing, unlawful assembly and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 132 of the Representation of People Act by the Moghalpura police.
The case was filed with the help of a Home Guard, who was present at the polling station when the incident occurred, after the affected person (Salim) did not come forward, Moghalpura police said.
A video-footage aired on news channels showed Owaisi "hitting" Salim with a stick and his supporters "kicking" him in the stomach after the polling agent allegedly distributed money among voters.
Business News
Toshiba to cut 3,900 temporary jobs
Tokyo:
Japan's electronics giant Toshiba Corp said it will cut an additional 3,900 temporary jobs by the end of fiscal 2009 through March 2010 after saying it anticipates a wider group net loss of 350 billion yen for just-ended fiscal 2008.
The latest projection compares with its January forecast of a net loss of 280 billion yen and a year-earlier profit of 127.41 billion yen.
The company is not currently considering using the state-sponsored rehabilitation programme to restore its financial health, but added it does not rule out the possibility of applying for the scheme in the future,
Toshiba's Corporate Executive Vice President Fumio Muraoka said.
The company attributed the expansion of its net loss to a write-off of about 85 billion yen in deferred tax assets in anticipation of its largest-ever loss and first red-ink figure in seven years.
Toshiba will also continue to shorten working hours for employees mostly based in its semiconductor operations in the April-June period and reallocate about 3,000 full-time workers to profitable businesses. About 26,000 employees were under the work-sharing program for fiscal 2008.
The firm said it will slash investment spending to 250 billion yen in fiscal 2009, down 42 per cent from the previous year as part of its effort to cut fixed costs by 300 billion yen to swing back into the black.
Sports News
Pakistan stripped of 2011 World Cup hosting rights
DUBAI: Pakistan has been stripped of hosting rights for the 2011 World Cup because of the 'uncertain security situation' in the country, the
International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Friday.
"It is a regrettable decision (but) our number one priority is to create certainty and deliver a safe, secure and successful event," ICC president David Morgan told reporters after a meeting of the executive board in Dubai.
"The uncertainty created by events in Pakistan created a huge question mark over our ability to do just that."
At least seven Pakistanis were killed and six Sri Lanka players were injured during an armed attack on their team bus as they travelled to a test match in Lahore last month.
"It is extremely regrettable that the board has had to take this decision given the passion the people of Pakistan have for the game of cricket and for the ICC Cricket World Cup," Morgan said.
"It is highly unlikely that we will have the security clearance between now and the start date in 2011," said Morgan when asked if Pakistan would host international tournaments in the near future.
Pakistan were due to co-host the event with India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and the ICC said they would press ahead with the matches in those countries.
The ICC last year postponed the Champions Trophy, the second most important one-day event, due to security concerns in Pakistan and then shifted it to South Africa to be held later this year.
IPL's safari set to begin in South Africa
Cape Town:
Defying all odds, the second edition of the cash-awash Indian Premier League, a heady cocktail of cricket and entertainment, gets underway in its adopted home with a mouth-watering double header in Cape Town on Saturday.
It will be a double delight at the Newlands Stadium with back-to-back matches featuring some of the best contemporary cricketers in this slam-bang version of the game.
Under the iconic Sachin Tendulkar, Mumbai Indians will lock horns with last year's runners-up Chennai Super Kings, led by the charismatic Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
And before the crowd actually catch some breath, maverick England batsman Kevin Pietersen will lead Bangalore Royal Challengers onto the field, hoping to shed last year's laggard's tag.
The task would be easier said than done because Rajasthan Royals, under the wily Shane Warne, would be hoping for an encore and the defending champions would definitely love to start their campaign on a winning note on Saturday.
More than any team, it, however, would be a triumph of the indomitable spirit of the organisers when the 59-match razzmatazz finally rolls off the block tomorrow.
Considering how the league's fate hung in balance after its dates clashed with India's general election and the Home Ministry back home cited its inability to provide security for the tournament, IPL authorities have moved mountains to make the entire thing possible.
IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi and his team burnt midnight oil first to find a base away from India and then making the necessary arrangements befitting an event of such stature.
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