Lawyer escaped CST only to die in taxi blast | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Lawyer escaped CST only to die in taxi blast

Hindustan Times | By, Mumbai
Apr 18, 2009 11:19 PM IST

The trial in the November 26, 2008 terror attacks has made fresh again the tragedy that touched so many lives that day. One such tale emerged on Saturday, in the special court at the Arthur Road Jail.

The trial in the November 26, 2008 terror attacks has made fresh again the tragedy that touched so many lives that day. One such tale emerged on Saturday, in the special court at the Arthur Road Jail.

HT Image
HT Image

Submitting a report on the taxi blast at Vile Parle, the prosecution said a senior superintendent at Chattrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) had confirmed that Lakshmi Narayana Goel, a senior advocate from Hyderabad who was in Mumbai on business, was killed in that blast. It also revealed that records from the mobile company Goel subscribed to had provided details of a phone conversation between Goel and his sister-in-law Usha Chaudhary that evening.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

That call from Chaudhary saved Goel from the bullets of Ajmal Amir Kasab and his accomplice Ismail Khan at CST but a quirk
of fate landed him in the taxi where Kasab had planted an improvised explosive device (IED) and he wasn’t lucky the second
time round.

Goel — survived by his wife and four daughters — had just reached the busy railway station that evening to catch a train to Hyderabad when he got the call from Chaudhary. His sister-in-law asked him not to enter CST as terrorists were on the rampage inside. She asked him to head back to her house in Kandivli.

Goel got into a taxi outside the station and called his family in Hyderabad, telling them he would take the same train home the next day. Little did he suspect that Kasab and Khan had taken the same taxi to CST, or that they had planted a bomb in it.

Umar Sheikh, the driver, also did not suspect anything. When one of his friends, Irshad Sheikh, told him not to go towards CST because firing was on there, Umar told him not to worry as he was heading for Kandivli. Umar and Goel’s journey ended when the IED ticked off on the Western Express Highway at Vile Parle, killing them both. Chowdhury identified Goel the next day from the half-burnt legal documents he was carrying.

100 witnesses
Having made this revelation, the prosecution got down to the business of telling the special court about the witnesses it would like to examine — including Federal Bureau of Investigation agents and foreign experts — to establish Kasab’s complicity. Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said 100 potential witnesses from a list of 1,820 would be examined. The foreign experts would be relied on to throw light on the global positioning system equipment and cellphones used by the 10 terrorists.

Malabar Hill was target
Nikam also told the court that Kasab and Khan planned to strike the VIP locality of Malabar Hill, where the bungalows of the governor, chief minister and ministers are located. Only Khan knew the details and told Kasab he would reveal them when they got there. Fortunately, he was gunned down by the police before he could carry out the plan.

As many as 170 people — more than 20 of them foreign visitors — lost their lives in the series of attacks that day.

(With inputs from PTI)

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    author-default-90x90

    Presley Thomas heads the crime and legal team of Hindustan Times, Mumbai. Has been a journalist since the last 16 years and has worked with various national dailies. Covers defence and terrorism, and has reported from various states across the country

SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On