Mohammad Ajmal Amir Kasab, the sole surviving gunman from the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, was hanged on Wednesday morning in Pune's Yerwada jail and buried in the prison yard. The execution, carried out days before the fourth anniversary of the attacks, marked the first capital punishment in India since 2004 and only the third in 17 years.
Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde confirmed that President Pranab Mukherjee had rejected Kasab's clemency plea. Kasab, 24, was part of a group that killed over 160 people across multiple sites, including luxury hotels, a railway station, tourist cafes and a Jewish centre. His image carrying an AK-47 through Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus became iconic.
Local editor Sachin Kalbag said the execution brought relief and closure for victims' families, though he stressed no joy existed over the death itself. Lashkar-e-Taiba leaders praised Kasab as a hero, while Pakistan's Taliban expressed shock at the hanging. Critics, including Human Rights Watch, condemned the end of India's moratorium on capital punishment.
Pakistan's interior minister reiterated that evidence provided by India against Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed was insufficient. Former general Talat Masood cited a lack of political will in Pakistan to act against militants. David Headley's testimony had implicated junior ISI officials but no senior knowledge.
Analysts doubted the hanging would derail India-Pakistan relations, noting Pakistan's president had ratified relaxed visa rules for Indian travellers on Tuesday. The UN had recently adopted a resolution calling for a moratorium on executions, which India opposed.
