Additional commissioner of police Sadanand Date, 42, gave a detailed account of the 40-minute gun battle at Cama Hospital on the night of November 26, 2008.
The prosecution’s 118th witness and the senior-most police officer deposed in the 26/11 trial on Friday. Additional commissioner of police Sadanand Date, 42, gave a detailed account of the 40-minute gun battle at Cama Hospital on the night of November 26, 2008.
Date said during his combat with terrorists Mohammed Ajmal Amir, alias Kasab, and his slain aide Abu Ismail Khan he had sustained injuries in his right eye, chest and legs. Doctors have still not been able to remove a splinter from near his eye, he said.
Dressed in his uniform, Date stood in the witness box for over an hour as special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam examined him. Date gave a detailed account of how he went to the Cama Hospital’s sixth floor with his team of seven armed policemen. He said that the terrorists hurled two grenades towards them on the sixth floor and almost all the officers were injured in the second grenade blast. “When the grenade exploded, I realised that these were no ordinary criminals,” said Date, an IPS officer of the 1990 batch.
Date said that he was wearing a bullet-proof vest at the time of the attack and threw iron clips into the terrace of Cama Hospital before entering at 11:15 pm. He said that as soon as he threw those iron clips, the terrorists opened burst fire.
Cross-examining Date, Kasab’s advocate Abbas Kazmi asked him why he did not open burst fire in return. Date said, “Anyone who understands such challenging situations knows that your ammunition is your life.” He added, “I had limited ammunition and force with me. So in this situation I did not think it advisable to go in for burst fire. I might have fired 22 rounds in all.”
Two police officials, sub-inspector Prakash More and constable Vijay Khandekar, were too badly injured to be moved, but all others, including the hospital staff members, were sent down for treatment and to ask for reinforcements, he said. More and Khandekar succumbed to their injuries.
Date said they had a fire exchange with the terrorist for 40 minutes. He informed KL Prasad, the joint commissioner of police (law and order), at 11:50 pm that the terrorists had left the terrace of the hospital but he could not follow then as he was seriously injured. Date received a gallantry award from the state government later.
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