Pak court rejects suspects' plea for acquittal in 26/11

It also turned down an application by the suspects for Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist arrested alive during the attacks, to be brought to Pakistan from India for trial.

Judge Malik Muhammad Akram Awan, who is conducting the trial within Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi for security reasons, directed the prosecution to present evidence against the accused at the next hearing on January 16.

He rejected the applications filed by the suspects after hearing arguments by defence lawyers and the prosecution, which told the court that it has “strong evidence” against the accused.

The suspects had last month filed an application seeking their acquittal on the ground that there is no probability of their being convicted for any offence.

The accused—Lakhvi, Zarar Shah, Abu al-Qama, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jamil Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younas Anjum—were last year formally charged with planning and helping execute the assault on India’s financial hub in November 2008.

The court has issued notice to one of the defence lawyers after he contended that Judge Awan had indicted the accused on the basis of charges that were framed and argued while the case was being heard by another judge.