Kasab told SC that he was brainwashed before the incident

MUMBAI: The accused of 2008 Mumbai terror attack Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab facing death penalty claimed in the Supreme Court that 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.

Claiming innocence, Kasab said 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, Ajmal 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 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.”

The appeal said, “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 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.

Strange that after leaving 166 Mumbai citizens dead, Kasab is calming innocence in front of the Supreme Court.