Kasab. Terrorist or actor?
Photo: AFP
Mumbai suspect says wanted to be a Bollywood star
Alleged terrorist in Mumbai attack retracts confession, says he came to India as aspiring actor
The lengthy and bizarre trial of the only surviving suspect in the case of the terror attack in Mumbai took a turn Friday when the 21-year old Pakistani retracted his confession and told the court he was actually an aspiring actor trying to make it in Bollywood.
When his trial began in April Mohammad Ajmal Kasab denied involvement in last year's attack, which left 166 people dead. Later he confessed to the allegations against him and said he was "Ready to hang".
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Now he has retracted the confession and claimed that he arrived in Mumbai hoping to become a star in the Indian film industry, the UK Times reported late Friday.
In his confession Kasab gave elaborate details on his recruitment by Pakistani militants and rigorous training he underwent before being flown to Mumbai to commit the attack.
Now he is saying he was arrested by Indian police on the day before the November 26 attack.
Kasab's trial, dubbed by many journalists in India as "the trial of the century", has been slow-moving and prone to various twists and turns since it began in April.
His lawyers have received threats from Hindu extremists, and two were dismissed for professional misconduct. The trial itself is being conducted before a single judge in a missile-proof courtroom.
News agencies in India have reported various details on Kasab's daily life in prison, where he receives a strictly vegetarian diet and is said to be reading a biography of Ghandi. In recent months he has complained of illness and claims the guards have been attempting to poison him.
If Kasab, nicknamed 'the baby-faced killer', is convicted he faces the death penalty for crimes of murder and waging war on India.
