Ajmal Kasab found guilty of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack

On 3^rd May, 22-year-old Ajmal Kasab was convicted for almost all of the 86 charges he faced over the terror attacks on three luxury hotels, a restaurant, Jewish centre and the main Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) station in Mumbai in 2008. He faces the death penalty for murder. “You have been found guilty of waging war against India and killing people at CST, killing government officials and abetting the other nine terrorists,” judge M.L. Tahaliyani told Kasab in Hindi. Addressing Kasab, the judge further stated, “You got training in Pakistan…All of this has been proven against you.”

Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram hailed the decision as a symbol of judicial independence. “The judgment itself is a message to Pakistan that they should not export terror to India,” he said. “If they do, and we apprehend the terrorists, we will be able to bring them to justice and give them exemplary punishment.”

A labourer from Punjab, Kasab was identified as a primary suspect when an image of him carrying an AK-47 in a Mumbai train station was found. At first, Kasab denied the charges and then later pleaded guilty but finally claimed he was innocent and had been framed by the police.

Indian nationals Fahim Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed who were accused of providing logistical support to the terrorists by giving them handmade maps of the city were found not guilty.

LeT founder Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, key member Zarar Shah and Hafiz Saeed were also found to be complicit in the attack. Lakhvi and Shah are among seven suspects presently on trial in Rawalpindi.