August 29, 2012
India’s Supreme Court has cleared the way for Ajmal Kasab, the last surviving member of the Pakistani terrorist organisation that killed 166 people in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, to be executed.
Kasab, who was one of 10 ‘fidayeen’ commandos trained by Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist group, had claimed he had not received a fair trail and appealed for his death penalty to be commuted to life imprisonment.
August 29, 2012
India’s Supreme Court has cleared the way for Ajmal Kasab, the last surviving member of the Pakistani terrorist organisation that killed 166 people in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, to be executed.
Kasab, who was one of 10 ‘fidayeen’ commandos trained by Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist group, had claimed he had not received a fair trail and appealed for his death penalty to be commuted to life imprisonment.
The attack brought New Delhi and Islamabad to the brink of war after India’s prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh accused elements of Pakistan’s security services of supporting the plot. Kasab’s lawyer however had told the court he had not been part of a broader conspiracy against India.
The decision was eagerly anticipated by commentators who voiced their support for a speedy execution. “Today is Kasab's verdict day! Let's hope he gets the death sentence and is done away with! Am tired seeing him have tax-payer's biryani,” said Suhel Seth.
His comment reflected resentment in India over the £2million the government has paid to date to keep Kasab in in a high security cell in Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail.
In their verdict, two Supreme Court judges rejected his appeal and said: "We are left with no option but to award death penalty.…The primary and foremost offence committed by Kasab is waging war against the government of India.”
Prosecutors now expect Kasab, 25, to appeal to India’s president for clemency. Few prisoners are executed in India and many have their sentences commuted.
Courtesy: Daily Telegraph
