Kasab smiles during his death penalty hearing

Mumbai, Oct 18 (IANS) As the arguments on confirmation of his death sentence began before the Bombay High Court Monday, Pakistani terrorist Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab presented a happy-go-lucky picture.

After government counsel Ujjwal Nikam started his arguments, Kasab (22) — present in the court from 11 a.m. via video-conference — was seen smiling, bored, yawning, scratching his head, playing with his uniform buttons, stretching his arms and appearing totally unperturbed about the crucial life-and-death proceedings in the high security Court No 49.

Addressing a division bench comprising Justices Ranjana Desai and R.V. More, Nikam detailed the terror acts by Kasab and his nine companions who came from Pakistan and attacked Mumbai Nov 26-29, 2008, killing 166 people, including 26 foreigners and injuring around 300 others.

Terming the attacks as ‘state-sponsored’, Nikam emphatically said that these were executed by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) with the aid of the neighbouring country’s security apparatus.

Nikam detailed in his opening arguments how the 10-member group sailed from Karachi by the Arabian Sea route, planted bombs in a cab, how they started the attacks at the Leopold Cafe in Colaba and other locations, and how they annihilated three top Mumbai police officials – Hemant Karkare, Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar at the Cama Hospital.

As Nikam mentioned the evidence of a Railway Protection Force constable Jillu Yadav who fought the terrorists at Chhatrapati Shivaji Railway Terminus with his colleague’s .303 rifle and later hurled a chair at them when the gun jammed, Justice Ranjana Desai praised the presence of mind of the Mumbai Police.

‘This is a lesson to be learnt by the police. The police have shown great amount of courage in the fight against the two terrorists at CST but it is really disheartening to know that their rifles jammed at a crucial time,’ Justice Ranjana Desai observed.

The entire Bombay High Court campus in south Mumbai – barely a kilometre away from the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Hotel Trident-Oberoi – was guarded like a fortress with unprecedented security measures at all entry and exit points.

Earlier this year May 6, a special court had awarded the death sentence to Kasab, which has now come up for confirmation before the Bombay High Court in accordance with Indian laws.

Two other co-accused in the case, Faheem Ansari and Sabahuddin Ahmed, who were acquitted by the Special Court owing to ‘doubtful evidence’ against them, were re-arrested following an appeal filed by the state government.

Both are currently lodged in different jails in Mumbai.