26/11: Jundal to stay in jail till December 22

New Delhi: The judicial custody of LeT terrorist and 26/11 Mumbai attack key handler Abu Jundal was on Monday extended by 12 days by a Delhi court in a case lodged by the NIA against him for allegedly conspiring to launch terror strikes across the country. Jundal was produced before District Judge IS Mehta in an in-chamber proceeding and the court extended his judicial custody till December 22 after National Investigation Agency (NIA) said its probe into the case is still going on, the court sources said.

The NIA had lodged an FIR against Jundal following the unearthing of a Lashkar-e-Toiba's (LeT) conspiracy for terror strikes across the country. The court had first remanded Jundal to judicial custody on October 20 after the NIA said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in connection with the case.

Gujarat ATS too had earlier taken Jundal's custody for questioning on his alleged role in the 2006 Karanawati Express train blast at Ahmedabad station. Jundal is alleged to be one of the main conspirators of the blast. Prior to that, Jundal had been handed over to the ATS Mumbai after Delhi Police had said he was no longer required to be interrogated by it in the Jama Masjid attack case.

Mumbai ATS had secured his custody in connection with the 2006 Aurangabad arms haul case, the 26/11 Mumbai mayhem, the 2010 German bakery blast and the Nasik Academy attack. The Delhi Police had earlier filed a charge sheet against Jundal accusing him of being involved in terror activities across India to avenge the alleged atrocities against Muslims, particularly those committed during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The charge sheet, filed by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vidya Prakash, had said Jundal had disclosed that he along with LeT chief Zaki-ur-Rehman alias Lakhvi, monitored the 26/11 attacks from a control room set up at Malir in Karachi, Pakistan.

The chargesheet said after his arrest from the IGI Airport here on June 21 this year, Jundal, during questioning, had admitted to his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack.

The Delhi Police had said this in a supplementary charge sheet in the Jama Masjid blast case in which 11 alleged members of terror outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM) were charge sheeted earlier.