Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks who has been hanged to death, received due process of law in a full and transparent trial, the US said today.
India has asked Pakistan to increase security at its embassy, officials said today, after the execution of Pakistani militant Mohammed Kasab who was hanged for his role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
India hanged Ajmal Kasab, the sole terrorist captured alive from the 26/11 attacks, early on Wednesday amid high secrecy four years to the month after he and his accomplices murdered 166 people in the financial capital Mumbai. In an operation remarkable for its secrecy, the 25-year-old was moved out of Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail at 1.30am on Tuesday and driven in a bullet-proof vehicle to Yerwada along the Mumbai-Pune expressway, escorted by jawans handpicked from the Indo-Tibetan Border Police. Neither they nor Kasab were told he would be hanged a day later.
HT reports.
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The execution
Ajmal Kasab’s hanging will provide some relief to those who lost near and dear ones during the 26/11 attacks,” said K Unnikrishnan, father of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, an NSG commando who was killed during the three-day carnage.
Former high court judges and top police officials in the city were all praises for the meticulous planning and secrecy maintained in the execution of 26/11 terrorist Mohamed Ajmal Kasab. Experts were also of the opinion that this would send out a message that India would not tolerate acts of terror.
The cities of Mumbai and Pune were put on high alert, while a general alert was sounded across the state after Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative Mohamed Ajmal Amir Kasab was hanged at Yerwada prison on Wednesday morning.
HT reports.
Pakistan has formally endorsed the hanging of Ajmal Kasab saying that a terrorist has met his logical end. Interior minister Rehman Malik told media persons on Wednesday that Pakistan stance on terrorism “was very clear” and that it stood against terrorism in any country.
Imtiaz Ahmad reports.
Effect on Indo-Pak relations
At a time when the BJP was hoping to corner the government on FDI in retail, it was caught unawares on Wednesday with the hanging of Ajmal Kasab,
Vikas Pathak reports.
There is still little clarity on the case that is being pursued in Pakistan against some of those accused of planning and executing the Mumbai attacks. Last week, intelligence officials testified that they had proof that the accused were involved in the planning of the attacks from various cities and towns of Pakistan.
Imtiaz Ahmad reports.
By executing Ajmal Kasab, a battered Congress has sought not only to shrug off charges of being soft on terror but also redeem its political image nationally,
Aurangzeb Naqshbandi reports.
Thousands of lucky survivors from various spots targetted by terrorists during the 26/11 attacks rejoiced at the news of lone surviving gunman Ajmal Kasab’s execution, though some expressed unhappiness about the secrecy of the operation.
HT reports.
There could not have been a better time to hang Ajmal Kasab, at least for the ruling Congress-NCP alliance in the state. And, this execution will give the Democratic Front government, both, short and long term political dividends,
Ketaki Ghoge reports.
As news of Ajmal Kasab’s secret execution spread across the country on Wednesday morning, Mumbaiites greeted it with diverse reactions – some celebrated, others found their faith in the judiciary renewed, while a section of residents felt the action came too late and that his hanging was just the tip of the iceberg with regard to the attacks.
Vaishnavi Vasudevan and
Farhan Sheikh report.