26/11: Pak court fixes March 6 for next hearing

The anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi also reportedly issued notices asking some prosecution witnesses to be present at the next hearing

A view of the Taj hotel which bore the brunt of the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai. File photo: PTI

A Pakistani court conducting the trial of seven suspects, including Lashker-e-Taiba commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, charged with planning and facilitating the Mumbai attacks on Monday scheduled the next hearing of the case for March 6.

Sources said Monday’s hearing was a mere formality as the last hearing, scheduled for February 27, was not held as it coincided with the holiday marking Prophet Muhammad’s birth.

“The judge scheduled the next hearing for March 6,” Shahbaz Rajput, a lawyer representing some of the accused, said.

Sources said the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi also issued notices asking some prosecution witnesses to be present at the next hearing.

The trial is being conducted by judge Malik Muhammad Akram Awan within the heavily guarded Adiala Jail for security reasons.

The seven accused — Lakhvi, Zarar Shah, Abu al-Qama, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jamil Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younas Anjum — are being held in the same prison.

They were last year formally charged with planning and helping execute the assault on India’s financial hub in November 2008 that killed nearly 166 people.