Abu Jundal police custody extended till September 3

A special court in Mumbai on Friday extended the police custody of the LeT operative and key 26/11 handler Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal till September 3 in connection with the 2006 Aurangabad arms haul case.

A special court in Mumbai on Friday extended the police custody of the LeT operative and key 26/11 handler Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal till September 3 in connection with the 2006 Aurangabad arms haul case.

The Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) told the MCOCA court that Jundal was the main accused in the case and they were on the look out for other accused who were absconding.

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Meanwhile, the court on Friday rejected Jundal's request to talk to his parents. He was earlier allowed to speak to his parents over the phone.

The court rejected his request after ATS told the court that they could not let Jundal speak to his parents frequently for security reasons.

"This time you cannot speak to your parents... next time we will see," said special MCOCA (Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act), judge SM Modak.

Jundal was brought to Mumbai on July 21 after a Delhi court handed over his custody to the ATS, which wanted him in connection with a series of terror-related crimes in Maharashtra. The ATS had, however, allowed Mumbai crime branch to secure his custody in the 26/11 case.

On May 8, 2006, Maharashtra ATS team had chased a Tata Sumo and an Indica car on Chandwad-Manmad highway near Aurangabad and arrested three terror suspects and seized 30 kg RDX, 10 AK-47 assault rifles and 3,200 bullets.

The Indica was allegedly driven by Jundal, who managed to give police the slip that day. Later, he escaped to Bangladesh from where he fled to Pakistan on a fake passport obtained with the help of LeT operatives, according to the crime branch.