Almost as soon as he took over as Ajmal Kasab's lawyer, Abbas Kazmi said he wasn't sure if his client was a Pakistani. As a defence attorney, this could have been a great strategy and the Indian Constitution does provide for a fair trial.
Now, here are some queries that Mr. Kazmi will face (besides, of course, the one of him being a Pakistani soul in Indian body!):
* The Pakistani government has accepted Kasab, so how does he disprove that?
* The Pakistani media has tracked his house and family - does he disown them?
* Kasab himself has mentioned his village and country, can he retract that?
* Even if he says he was pressurised to make a false confession, the question remains as to why he asked for a Pakistani lawyer then.
* By giving out his main line of argument, is the lawyer trying to disassociate with Pakistan because of the baggage involved for an Indian Muslim?
* Has he given some thought to the fact that despite having represented the accused in the 1993 blasts case, he was chosen over a few others?
* Given his declaration about doubts regarding his client's nationality, does he realise that options for evidence would be limited? What happens to the counter-queries the Pakistani government has sent us after receiving the dossier?
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Now we come to some crucial points.
This reportage of Kasab's trial has already become a joke. What he wore, what he ate, how he smiled, who he looked at...this isn't a soap opera. We had enough of that following the attack.
Terrorism is being made into an election issue and will be misused. Last night a young BJP member said that people were asking her about Afzal Guru. Oh dear. The youth have other problems and am glad for once Jayanti Natarajan of the Congress responded that the cases against Rajiv Gandhi's killers are still pending. Every political party is going to use what it can.
The Left is happily posing with Vaiko who has made anti-national statements.
The Naxalites went on a killing spree and all we hear about is the voter turnout.
Please note that we get all bothered only when one country is mentioned: Pakistan.
Therefore, the Kasab trial should be put on hold until the elections are over. He is behind bars and in our custody.
Time to take care of our Maoists and their demands. The Indian state has to deal with the Indian state first.
I agree.. the trial must be put on hold. But can they lawfully do so?
ReplyDeleteThe funniest and ambiguous question is, what is defence lawyer supposed to do here? Reduce the sentence or protect Kasab?
ReplyDeleteWhen we have enough evidence to blame Pakistan, Why not to hang Kasab when he was caught red-handed?
It would be better if reporting the trial is stopped and not the trial. Kasab deserves a fair trial and I hope his lawyer is good.It shows that we are a just society to the world
ReplyDeleteAnon:
ReplyDeleteIf that were the case then Majeed Memon would have several bestsellers. And why forget others who took up controversial cases like Ram Jethmalani and his son, both members of the BJP, the latter a candidate this time?
Atul:
Going by the number of undertrial cases, sure. And it would be at the government or court's discretion not the accused's.
Sudhie:
Fortunately the justice system does not work along kneejerk reactions.
KB:
If the media is prevented there will be several accusations, whichever way the proceedings swing. Yes, techically we are onto the fair trial system and this time round it works as showpiece to the world too.
Arjun:
One could easily make the case that you refuse to see any other forms of terrorism. I have mentioned the LTTE and Naxalites in this blogpost itself. And obviously you have not read my piece on Gorkhaland - 19-6-2008, reproduced here - because that is not what interests people like you. Yes it bothers me that many have such a narrow vision.
My views on terrorism in general are not hidden and that's a different argument.