After Kasab farce, it is prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam’s turn

In the presence of state home minister RR Patil, who made a surprise visit to the 26/11 court on Tuesday, special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam ranted hoarse about the role of Pakistan in the November 26, 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai.

Patil, clad in a white safari suit, came to the high security court at noon to listen to Nikam’s opening arguments in the case, and was seen keenly looking at the Pakistani gunman, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab. He was accompanied by minister of state for home Ramesh Bagwe.

In a sweeping statement, Nikam declared in court, “The terrorist attack of 26/11 is a classic case of sponsored terrorism.” Perhaps expecting a few gasps, Nikam added, “Probably a few eyebrows will be raised in court when I say that. But an irrefutable, irresistible inference can be drawn that the attack was sponsored by state actors involved in [Pakistan’s] security apparatus.”

It was then revealed that Nikam’s primary evidence to support this claim was Kasab’s retracted confessional statement that mentions a ‘Major saab’ who was present at the training camp, though his identity is still not known to the Mumbai police. “The attackers were provided detailed, methodological military training, especially in handling AK-47s, which is a weapon of mass destruction,” exclaimed Nikam.

He also referred to the alleged payments made by one Kharak Singh in Pakistan to US internet telephony firm Callphonex for the voice-over internet protocol (VoIP) allegedly used by Pakistani handlers to guide the attackers in Mumbai.

Kasab’s retracted confession states that ‘Major saab’ had asked them if they had any complaints with the training. “This implies two things. The training was organised by the Major General.

Secondly, he was keen that they complete their mission,” claimed Nikam.

He also said that the 10 gunmen tried hard to suppress their national identity by acquiring fake identity cards. “Who advised the LeT not to reveal its identity? If it was only the LeT working, they would have broadcast their attack [sic]. It’s the agents behind the attack who were interested in their identity not being revealed.”

Nikam then made a personal remark on Kasab, who had confessed before a magistrate and then before the court, but has denied everything in his final statement. “He acts like a joker. I don’t know if he was working as a joker in Pakistan,” Nikam quipped. He claimed that Kasab “played to the gallery”, indicating that he actively sought publicity. “Kasab must know that a villain can never become a hero,” he shouted out.