Ajmal Kasab's demand for mutton biryani in jail was a myth, says public prosecutor

Lawyer says he concocted facts to stop an emotional atmosphere from being created in favour of Kasab

Mumbai terror-attack accused Ajmal Kasab's demand for mutton biryani in jail was a myth and was "concocted" in order to stop an "emotional wave" from being created in favour of the militant, public prosecutor for the case, Ujjwal Nikam said.

"Kasab never demanded biryani and was never served by the government. I concocted it just to break an emotional atmosphere which was taking shape in favour of Kasab during the trial of the case," Nikam told reporters after an international conference on counter-terrorism in Jaipur.

Providing further clarification for why he made up such facts, Nikam said that the media was minutely observing Kasab's body language and the he was quite aware of it too.

Read: Ajmal Amir Kasab and the politics of hate

"One day, in the court room, he bowed his head and wiped his eyes. Moments later, electronic media broke the news — tears in Kasab's eyes. It was Rakshabandhan that day, and panel discussions were started in the media on it. Some guessed Kasab got emotional in memory of his sister and some even went on to question whether he was a terrorist or not," Nikam said.

The lawyer asserted that such an "emotional wave and atmosphere" needed to the stopped.

"So, after that, I gave a statement to the media saying Kasab has demanded mutton biryani in the jail."

Read: Mumbai attacks: India hangs Ajmal Kasab

Nikam said when he told the media,  there were panel discussions again in this regard and the media started highlighting that a terrorist was demanding mutton biryani in jail while "the truth is that Kasab neither asked for biryani nor was it served."

Kasab was executed by the Indian government on November 21, 2012 nearly four years after the November 2008 attack.

This article originally appeared on The Times of India