New Delhi: Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab
facing death penalty for the 2008 Mumbai terror attack claimed
in the Supreme Court he was brainwashed like a "robot" into
committing the heinous crime in the name of "God" and that he
does not deserve capital punishment owing to his young age.
Though at the outset claiming innocence, Kasab posed a
rider that even assuming he was guilty, death penalty cannot
be awarded to him as he was brainwashed into committing the
crime and was not beyond reform owing to his young age.
In his special leave petition challenging the death
penalty, Kasab through counsel Gaurav Agrawal claimed that he
was innocent and his so-called confessional statement had no
evidentiary value as there was no corroboration.
The 24-year-old lone surviving gunman from the Mumbai
carnage that left 166 persons dead submitted that he had
retracted the disclosure statements, but the same was relied
upon by the trial court and the high court for handing down
the death penalty.
"The High Court ought to have held that even if the
petitioner was guilty for the offences alleged this wasn't a
fit case for imposing death sentence on the petitioner
inter-alia for the reason that the petitioner's mind was
completely brainwashed by the other co-accused.
"He was acting like a robot having been made to believe
that he was acting in the name of God when he was allegedly
told to commit the aforesaid offences," the appeal said.
PTI
First Published: Monday, October 10, 2011, 22:10