Kin identifies Jundal’s voice from 28-min call

Mumbai: A relative of Zabihuddin Ansari, alias Abu Jundal, a key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case of November 2008, on Thursday deposed before a sessions court and identified Jundal’s voice from a conversation that took place between four Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) attackers perpetrating the terror attack at Nariman House and Jundal. Jundal was issuing instructions to these attackers from a temporary control-room in Karachi, Pakistan. Jundal was the lone Indian among the Karachi-based LeT men at the control room.     

“Zabih (Jundal)’s maternal grandfather and my maternal grandfather are cousins, and I know him from childhood. Hence I was able to recognise his voice,” said Rafe Ansari, while answering questions asked by special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam. Ansari also told the court that he and Zabih studied in same Zilla Parishad school till Class 10 but Zabih was senior to him.

“I recognised his voice and his pronunciation as he uses some words of Marathi in during the conversation, which is there in the conversation,” said Ansari after hearing a more than 28-minute long intercepted conversation. The telephonic conversation is one of the 27 intercepted conversations available with the investigating agency. The recording was played in courtroom on Thursday.

Jundal’s defence lawyer Khan Abdul Wahab, during his cross examination of Ansari, claimed that Prashikshan (training) and Yuva (youth) were used in recorded conversation which are Marathi words and attackers, being Pakistani would not use those words.

Ansari, in his statement had told the prosecution that in 2010 Zabih had visited him in Madina, where this witness used to work as a receptionist. Later, in January 2012, when Ansari was coming back to India, Zabih had given him 4000 Saudi Riyals and had asked him to give it Zubair, through whom this money was supposed to be given to an accused of the Aurangabad arms haul case.  But the defence claimed that the money was meant for one Kashif as charity, as his family was facing some problem.

Answering questions asked by advocate Khan, Ansari replied in affirmation that there was no voice of any firing, blast or cry in the background of conversation. Though Andari confirmed that somebody in the conversation said that he had hurled hand grenade two minutes before making the phone call. Ansari’s cross examination will continue on Friday.