Abu Jundal's document plea a fishing inquiry: HC

Calling the move a "fishing and roving inquiry," the Bombay High Court has quashed a 2018 special court order that directed government authorities to produce confidential documents sought by Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal, accused of training the 26/11 Mumbai terrorists in Hindi and local mannerisms.

- Urvi Mahajani

Justice RN Laddha, in a 36-page judgment, allowed petitions filed by the Delhi Police, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the Ministry of External Affairs challenging the trial court's order. The HC said the special court "ought not to have invested time in passing an absolutely unsustainable order which is nothing but a fishing and roving inquiry at the behest of the accused."

The detailed order was made available on Tuesday. With this ruling, the trial against Ansari — which had remained since 2018 — will now resume.

Ansari, who was deported from Saudi Arabia and brought to India in 2012, is facing trial for his alleged role in training the 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists who executed the 26/11 attacks, one of the most devastating terror strikes in India's history that claimed 166 lives and injured hundreds. He is accused of teaching the terrorists how to communicate using Indian slang and behavioural cues, allegedly enabling them to blend in during the assault.