NIA tight-lipped over identity of Indian aides of Headley

The NIA has told a designated court here that the Indian suspects, who had helped Headley and others to plot and carry out terror attacks in Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country between 2005-09, hailed from Kerala and Mumbai.

The agency informed the court about it while seeking to conduct the lie-detection test of the suspects for which it was asked to take the consent of those whose names have been given in a sealed cover.

Their numbers, addresses and the status as to whether they are in custody or not have not been disclosed in open court as these details have been provided to the court in a sealed cover.

The court asked the NIA to get the consent of the accused for the test in writing and file them on record.

However, it was not known, how much time has been granted to the agency to get their consent before the court.

The move to conduct the lie detection tests assumed significance as the NIA has recently secured NBWs against two Pakistani officers Major Iqbal and Major Sameer Ali along with Lashkar operatives Sajid Majid, Syed Abdur Rehman and Illyas Kashmiri for getting the Red Corner Notices issued by the Interpol.

Besides them, the NIA, in the FIR filed on November 11 last year, has made American of Pakistani origin Headley, Tawahoor Rana, Canadian national also of Pakistani origin, who are now in the custody of FBI, Mumbai terror mastermind Hafiz Sayeed, LeT operations commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi as accused.

The nine accused are wanted in connection with terror attacks in Mumbai, Delhi and other places since 2005.