1993 Mumbai blasts: CBI struggles to ascertain Dawood aide’s identity

Takla was produced before special TADA judge Govind Sanap on Wednesday afternoon.

The CBI is making all efforts to establish the identity of Farooq Mansoor alias Farooq Takla, who was arrested earlier this month in connection with the 1993 serial blasts case.

Takla was produced before special TADA judge Govind Sanap on Wednesday afternoon. CBI counsel Deepak Salvi sought for extension of his custody to ascertain Takla’s role.

The agency claimed that previously convicted accused Hanif Usman Shaikh, Ibrahim Shaikh Husain and Shaikh Usman Khan were called by the agency to join the investigation against Takla.

The trio was convicted by the TADA court in connection with 1993 blast and were sentenced to six years jail. They were sent to Pakistan for training and had named Takla and his brother Mohmad Ahmad Mansoor in their confession statement. Ahmad was acquitted by the TADA court.

The CBI had called the three accused to help the agency to identify Takla. However, the agency claimed the three men have not cooperated. The trio had also moved a plea against agency on Monday claiming that CBI was coercing them.

“This is not the stage where the court would direct the agency on what evidence to collect and what to omit. This is also not the stage where the court would decide on legality of the evidence so collected by the agency,” the special judge observed while extending his custody to the CBI till April 9.

Meanwhile, the agency further claimed that Takla had evaded the arrest for many years by assuming different identities under the name of Mustak Mohmmad Miya and also got a fake passport issued on the same name. It is alleged that Takla had forged the documents and obtained the said passport, while the record at the passport office has different details about Mustak.

The agency further claimed that when they investigated with the Regional Passport office, Mumbai, it was revealed that the passport was fabricated. The photograph on the copy of the Index card of the passport office was identified as Mustak Ahmed Faki Mahmood Khatib by his wife Rabia.