Pakistan may seek custody of Ajmal, says Malik

Pakistan might seek custody of Mohammad Ajmal Amir, the lone terrorist captured during the Mumbai attacks, to strengthen its efforts to prosecute other suspects detained for links to the strikes, Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said on Saturday.
 
"If investigators recommend it and the court asks for him, then definitely we will do that," Malik said here when asked if Pakistan would seek access to Ajmal.
 
"It's premature (to speculate) but when the name of a person appears in a FIR, he is needed in the case... We will do it when our investigators think he is needed here,"he said.
 
On Thursday, Pakistan listed Ajmal among nine accused in a FIR filed in connection with the Mumbai attacks. It also acknowledged for the first time that part of the conspiracy behind the attacks was hatched within the country.
 
Ajmal was captured alive and nine other terrorists were killed in the attacks that killed 183 people. After weeks of denial, Islamabad acknowledged Ajmal as a Pakistani national in January.
 
Malik also asked Indian authorities to respond to 30 questions submitted by Pakistan, saying the information which has been sought will help strengthen the prosecution of the accused.
 
Pakistani authorities have six of the nine accused named in the FIR, including Lashker-e-Taiba operatives Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Zarar Shah and Hamad Amin Sadiq, in custody.