Pakistan court adjourns Mumbai attack trial for the 4th time

Prosecution in the 2008 Mumbai attack on Wednesday failed to produce the record of the case involving seven suspects, including mastermind Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhvi, forcing Pakistan's anti-terrorism court to adjourn the hearing for the fourth consecutive time till April 15.

"No proceeding of the case was held today for the fourth consecutive hearing as the record of the case has been lying with the Islamabad High Court in connection with the government's plea against the bail to Mumbai attack mastermind Lakhvi," an official of Anti-Terrorism Court Islamabad said after the hearing.

No proceedings of the Mumbai case have been held since Lakhvi got bail on December 14 last year following which the government detained him under a public security act. Just before he was to be released from the high-security Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi, Lakhvi was arrested on charges of kidnapping an Afghan national in 2009.

However he has also secured bail in the kidnapping case. Lakhvi challenged his detention in Islamabad High Court, which on March 13 suspended the government order to detain him and ordered his immediate release However, the very next day, the Punjab government detained Lakhvi for another 30 days under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO). Lakhvi has challenged his detention in Lahore High Court and the case is pending. 

Lakhvi, and six others - Abdul Wajid, Mazhar Iqbal, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jameel Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younis Anjum - have been charged with planning and executing the Mumbai attack in November, 2008 that left 166 people dead. 

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