The long-stalled trial of Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal — accused of training the 10 Pakistani terrorists involved in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks — is set to finally resume after the Bombay High Court on Monday quashed a lower court order directing authorities to hand over confidential documents to him.
A bench of Justice R.N. Laddha allowed a petition filed by the Delhi Police, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the Ministry of External Affairs challenging a 2018 directive by the trial court that required them to furnish specific classified records sought by Ansari. The trial had been on hold since then, pending the High Court’s decision on the government’s plea.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, argued that the trial court’s order was “bad in law” and could not stand. The High Court accepted this contention, clearing the way for the continuation of the proceedings before the special court in Mumbai.
Ansari, a key Lashkar-e-Taiba operative, is accused of not only helping plan the 26/11 attacks but also personally training the 10 terrorists — including Ajmal Kasab — in Hindi and Mumbai’s local mannerisms so they could blend in during the operation.
In 2018, he had filed an application before a Mumbai special court seeking documents to support his claim that he was arrested in Saudi Arabia and deported to India, not apprehended from Delhi as the authorities maintained. The trial court had granted his request, prompting the government to approach the Bombay High Court for relief.
With Monday’s judgment, the High Court effectively removed the last procedural hurdle in the trial that has remained stalled for seven years. The order ensures that sensitive national security documents remain protected and the trial can now proceed without further delay.
Investigators allege that Ansari coordinated with handlers based in Karachi during the 26/11 operation and was the voice intercepted giving real-time instructions to the terrorists. He was deported to India from Saudi Arabia in June 2012 after Indian agencies confirmed his identity through DNA tests conducted on his family in Beed, Maharashtra.
In 2016, a special MCOCA court sentenced him to life imprisonment in the 2006 Aurangabad arms haul case. Ansari is also facing multiple terror-related cases filed by the Delhi Police, the NIA, and several state police forces, including those in Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Karnataka.
The 26/11 attacks, carried out by ten heavily armed terrorists who arrived by sea on November 26, 2008, claimed 166 lives and left over 300 injured. Ajmal Kasab, the sole surviving gunman, was convicted and executed in 2012.
