I/III. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Nikam-says-Kasab-biryani-story-was-cooked-up/articleshow/46640143.cms
Nikam says Kasab-biryani story was cooked up Nitesh Kumar Sharma,TNN | Mar 21, 2015, 12.37 AM IST JAIPUR: The special public prosecutor in 26/11 case, Ujjwal Nikam, disclosed on Friday that he had concocted the story of Ajmal Kasab demanding mutton biryani to counter any "emotional atmosphere" which was being created in favour of the Pakistani terrorist. Speaking at a global conference on counter terrorism here, Nikam said he had prosecuted all kinds of criminals and terrorists, but had never come across someone like Kasab. "He not only knew how to handle sophisticated weapons, he knew how to interact with media and how to draw its attention through his facial expression and body language," said Nikam. READ ALSO: Kasab hanged -- a puppet's life ends on a string After the conference, Nikam told TOI that he had to 'fool' the media in the interest of the case. The public prosecutor recalled that during the trial, once Kasab bowed his head and wiped his eyes. "Soon, electronic media broke the news: 'tears in Kasab's eyes'. It was Raksha Bandhan that day, and some speculated that Kasab got emotional in memory of his sister. Some even went on to question whether he was a terrorist or not," Nikam said. Special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam, who secured terrorist Ajmal Kasab's conviction in the 26/11 case. (TOI photo by Sanjay Hadkar) "When I came out of the court one day, reporters asked me my first reaction on why Kasab was crying. I simply said he was demanding mutton biryani. Some channels went on to question the government for giving Kasab mutton biryani," said Nikam. READ ALSO: India should approach UN over Lakhvi, Ujjwal Nikam says Nikam stressed the need for the investigation agencies to work closely with prosecution in terror-related cases. "In India, the role of prosecution comes at a very late stage, after the police files the chargesheet. However, in the West, the prosecution steps in on the day of the incident itself," said Nikam, adding that prosecutors guided investigators in the 9/11 case. He said the biggest challenge in 26/11 case was to establish criminal conspiracy. "I closely worked with the investigators and stressed that our focus should not be on the 10 terrorists, but the larger conspiracy to establish who the masterminds behind the attacks were," said Nikam. II/III. http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/cooked-up-mutton-biryani-story-to-stop-emotional-wave-in-favour-of-kasab-nikam/article1-1328810.aspx Cooked up mutton biryani story to stop emotional wave in favour of Kasab, says Nikam Rakesh Goswami, Hindustan Times, Jaipur| Updated: Mar 20, 2015 21:29 IST Ajmal Kasab, hanged in India for the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, had never demanded mutton biryani and the story was manufactured to stop an emotional wave in favour of the Pakistani militant in the media, the public prosecutor in the case said on Friday. Ujjwal Nikam, the high-profile public prosecutor, said during a counter-terrorism conference that he had merely said "Kasab has demanded mutton biryani", a sentence which became the fodder for many sensational stories in the media to the effect that the government was serving the delicacy to a terrorist. It became such an issue, he recalled, that the then Maharashtra chief minister and opposition leaders visited the Arthur Road jail to check if Kasab was actually being served mutton biryani. Pakistani national Kasab was the lone member of the terrorist group who was captured alive during the November 2008 attack on the metropolis which left 166 people dead and many more injured. Kasab was hanged in November 2012, nearly four years after the attack. Going into the genesis of his statement, Nikam said during one of the court hearings, Kasab had wiped his eyes. The media immediately flashed a breaking news, "Kasab ki aankhon mein paani (Kasab's eyes are moist). "There were panel discussions on news channels: he is remembering his sister, Kasab is an innocent boy, he's a young boy, so he is repenting his crime." "This kind of emotional wave and atmosphere was needed to the stopped. So, after that, I gave a statement to the media saying Kasab has demanded mutton biryani in the jail," he said. What Nikam left unsaid was that after that remark there were many reports in media on Kasab's "tantrums" in jail. As he took the audience through the nitty-gritty of the trial, Nikam recalled that Kasab called him 'Badshah'. (With PTI inputs) III. http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/kasab-never-asked-for-mutton-biryani-i-cooked-it-up-ujjwal-nikam/ Kasab never asked for mutton biryani, I cooked it up: Ujjwal Nikam Ujjwal Nikam Written by Aamir Khan | Mumbai | Published on:March 21, 2015 3:07 am Ujjwal Nikam, the special public prosecutor who argued on behalf of the state during the 26/11 Mumbai attack trial, disclosed Friday that executed terrorist Ajmal Kasab had "never demanded nor was he given" mutton biryani while in custody. He said he "made up the statement... just to divert people's attention". That one remark of Nikam had led to public demands for a quick trial. It became a common refrain on social media and elsewhere -- "why feed them biryani" became a catchphrase whether it was a discussion on Afzal Guru or the Coast Guard's sinking of a Pakistani boat off the coast of Gujarat. Nikam, who made this admission at a counter-terrorism conference in Jaipur Friday, told The Indian Express later: "Media has to play a responsible role and has to be vigilant. They hyped his tears and portrayed him as a scapegoat, a young boy, which was not right. Related Kasab showed no remorse: Nikam Lawyers to govt: put gag on Ujjwal Nikam Trial will go on despite Kasab's confession: Prosecution Following the media hype, I saw a tilt in people's perspectives. It was then that I made up the statement and said he (Kasab) had demanded mutton biryani just to divert the people's attention." "There was a hullabaloo after the media reported that Kasab had turned emotional and was crying during the trial. There should not be a media trial as Kasab was not repenting, he was only pretending," Nikam said. Senior lawyer Rohini Salian, who was public prosecutor in prominent trials including the Ghatkopar and Mulund bomb blasts case, said such a comment should never have been made by an officer of the court. "We are representatives of the public as well as the society. As an officer of the court, I have no right to come to a conclusion. It is my duty to present the truth to the court and then leave it to the court to take a decision. As prosecutors, we can't be biased. We must present the case independently and without hatred for anyone," Salian said, adding that prosecutors must not make comments for publicity. Abbas Kazmi, the lawyer who represented Kasab during the 26/11 trial, slammed Nikam, saying he had insisted all along that Kasab never asked for biryani. "Nikam also claimed that Kasab had demanded expensive perfume. That too wasn't the case. Kasab told me the toilet in his cell had a broken flush and he, therefore, requested some ittar." Kazmi said Nikam had "no right to instigate the common man... it was unethical, immoral and was meant to misguide the court". -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
