The usage of the phrase 'rarest of rare cases' has a very interesting history attached to it in India.
Authorities of the Mumbai police had to protect Ajmal Kasab, the sole Pakistani terrorist arrested during the November 26 attack on the city, not only from the angry public, but even "from within the (police) department," Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Rakesh Maria said on Monday. "There was a lot of public anger. The dept had lost some of the best officers (during the attack), so we had to protect Kasab from within dept because there was anger in the department," said Maria.
'If Ajmal Kasab had spent his youth in solitary confinement, away from people and society, that would have been the biggest punishment India could have meted out to the terrorist,' feels Shobha Warrier.
Mumbai terror attacks accused and Pakistani gunman Ajmal Kasab on Monday denied killing Maharashtra Anti Terrorism squad chief Hemant Karkare, and police officers Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar.
Special Judge M L Tahilyani on Thursday lost his temper with Abbas Kazmi, the lawyer of 26/11 attacks main accused Ajmal Kasab and called him a liar and asked him for an unconditional apology.
The nine targets struck under 'Operation Sindoor', four in Pakistan and five in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, were chosen by the IAF after receiving intelligence inputs about terror camps operating under the guise of health centres to evade detection at these sites, officials said on Wednesday.
The Maria/Patekar character is shown as the first police officer to interrogate Kasab after his capture. Mahale was not happy with this scene. "I was the first to question Kasab," Mahale said. "I asked him, 'Kitne aadmi the?'"
Nikam has replaced two-time MP Poonam Mahajan, who is the daughter of the late BJP stalwart Pramod Mahajan.
Former National Security Adviser of Pakistan Mahmud Ali Durrani, who was sacked after disclosing to media the Pakistani nationality of Mumbai attacker Ajmal Kasab, has said he had written authorisation from the prime minister to speak on the evolving situation in the wake of the 26/11 strikes.
Ahead of Thursday's meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Asif Ali Zardari, India on Thursday said it was sure that Pakistan would not fail to take note of the Supreme Court verdict upholding the death sentence of Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist in the 26/11 attacks.
An American national who lost both her husband and daughter in the 26/11 terror attacks said the hanging of Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab has removed an "irritant" from the city of Mumbai and help the city to move on.
Judge Malik Muhammad Akram Awan made the observation after prosecution lawyers were unable to satisfy him on two key issues -- the serving of a non-bailable arrest warrant issued for Ansari and the receipt of written permission from India for sending a commission to interview key witnesses.
Some legal experts feel this may be a ploy to tell the court that he is mentally unbalanced in order to escape the death penalty.
The bottom line is that carrying out Kasab's death sentence is not going to bring closure to the 26/11 case. For that matter, the conviction of the terrorists being tried in Pakistan will not end the menace of terrorism in India. The real closure will come only with the closure of the Jihad factory in Pakistan, which in turn will happen only if Pakistan takes concerted and sincere efforts to de-radicalise its society and its polity, neither of which are on the anvil.
As Ajmal Kasab's trial comes to a close we catch up with 'Goli' Chauhan born just as the terrorists created havoc at Mumbai's Cama Hospital.
As Ajmal Kasab awaits punishment after being held guilty in the Mumbai attacks, the widow of an American killed in the terror strikes says she does not favour death penalty for the Pakistani gunman and prefers him to be jailed for life.
Former police officers and judges of the High Court and Supreme Court say that there is a need to bring back tougher laws since cases of terrorism have international ramification and under normal procedures there are too many obstacles that make the case of the prosecution extremely difficult.
The Bombay high court on Monday said it would deliver its verdict on February 21 on confirmation of death sentence awarded to Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab for his role in the 26/11 terror attacks and also on his appeal against his conviction.
Lawyer Abbas Kazmi talks about his stint in Bigg Boss.
Saeed made the remarks while addressing a Friday prayer congregation at a mosque in Gujranwala in Pakistan's Punjab province on Saturday.
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistan-born Canadian national and close associate of David Coleman Headley, could be extradited to India in connection with the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. Rana's travel history in parts of north and south India before the attacks in 2008 is expected to provide crucial leads for the investigation. His extradition would mark the third person to be tried in India for the attacks, after Ajmal Kasab and Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal.
For Rabbi Shimon Rosenberg, the death penalty to Ajmal Kasab, the lone terrorist in 26/11 attack, is a welcome step. But it cannot help in bringing back his daughter and son-in-law, who lost their lives in the 26/11 attacks. "It feels good that the court has awarded death sentence to the terrorist. But it does not comfort us because Gabi and Rivki cannot come back," Rabbi Shimon told PTI over the phone from Israel.
For the Gohils from Colaba not a day passes without shedding a tear for Harish, who fell prey to a stray bullet fired by terrorists at Colaba on November 26, 2008. All of 25, he was a pillar of support for this family of 14. Three years on, they still struggle to pick up the pieces, angry that crores have been spent on Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving gunman behind the Mumbai attacks.
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian national accused of playing a role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, has been extradited from the United States to India. Rana was arrested in the US in 2009 and convicted in 2011 for providing material support to the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group, which carried out the Mumbai attacks. He had been fighting extradition since 2012, but the US Supreme Court ultimately denied his review petition, paving the way for his transfer to India. Rana will now face trial in India for his alleged role in the attacks, which killed 166 people.
The verdict of a United States court holding Pakistani-Canadian Tahawwur Rana not guilty of the Mumbai terror attacks would not affect the legal proceedings against terrorist Ajmal Kasab and the charge against Lashkar-e-Tayiba of masterminded the strikes, special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said on Friday.
A special "Kasab class" is part of Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba's training module for its new recruits during which they are told about the mistakes committed by Ajmal Kasab during the deadly Mumbai terror attack.
The trial of lone surviving gunman in the Mumbai terror attack case, Mohammed Amir Ajmal Kasab, scheduled to begin in the premises of Arthur Road central jail on Monday, has been put off by a week as the construction of the special court is not yet over.
Over 100 terrorists, including high-value targets such as Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf and Mudasir Ahmed, were eliminated during Operation Sindoor on May 7, the Indian military said on Sunday.
'The night prior to his execution Kasab did not sleep and was seen praying. He told an official that he repented what he had done and sought Allah's mercy. He also told one guard that he would never be forgiven for what he had done. He was a nervous wreck and spent the entire night sitting.'
'It shows the signs of a weak government to avoid the heat from Afzal Guru that they carried out Ajmal Kasab's hanging in secrecy,' says IPS officer-turned-activist Y P Singh.
The prison constable from Yerwada Jail was part of a 20-member team that oversaw hanging of the 1993 Mumbai blasts convict
While describing LeT's plan to project the 26/11 attack as "Hindu Terror", Maria wrote, "If everything went according to plan, Kasab would have died as Chaudhari and the media would have blamed 'Hindu terrorists' for the attack."
Minister of State for Home R P N Singh has termed Ajmal Kasab's hanging as the triumph of Indian judicial system.
'The precision strikes were well planned and excellently executed. The world will be studying this operation.'
Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist in the Mumbai attack, has confessed that the original plan was to carry out the attack on September 27. This was part of the confession made by Ajmal Kasab.
The Lashkar-e-Tayiba, expert Stephen Tankel believes, is capable of operating on a large scale and some of its operatives have suggested that the organisation benefited in terms of recruitment following the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai.
Ajmal Kasab was hanged, but there are four other trials that need to be expedited to bring the real masterminds of the 26/11 attacks to justice. Vicky Nanjappa reports
Press Council of India chairman Markandey Katju has once again appealed to the president and the prime minister of Pakistan to release Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh who is on death row for over two decades.
"Frankly speaking, we have allowed rule of law to prevail (in the case of Ajmal Kasab). Similarly, we hope rule of law will be followed in Pakistan. There is not vast difference between the criminal procedures in India and Pakistan," External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told media persons in New Delhi.
Pakistan on Saturday said that an anti-terrorism court conducting the trial of the seven Pakistani suspects charged with involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks needs to validate lone surviving terrorist Ajmal Kasab's statement as it forms a key part of the case. "We made the statement of Ajmal Kasab as the base (of our case) but our courts require validation of his statement and we have written about this to India," Interior Minister Rehman Malik said.
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