The lone Islamist militant suspect captured by police during the Mumbai attacks told an Indian court yesterday he was from Pakistan and would accept a court-appointed lawyer to defend him.
Mohammed Ajmal Amir Iman, also known as Kasab, appeared before special judge M.L. Tahiliyani via video link from the Mumbai jail where he is being housed in a high-security cell.
Dressed in a grey T-shirt, the bearded Mr Iman, asked by the court if he wanted a lawyer for the trial, replied: "If there will be a trial then I will need a lawyer."
Mr Iman, who faces charges including murder, attempted murder and "waging war against India" over the attacks that killed 165 people, told the court he was a resident of Faridkot in the Punjab area of Pakistan.
The 21-year-old was the only alleged member of the 10-man hardline commando-type unit captured alive during the November 26-29 siege.
The attacks soured a five-year peace process between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan as New Delhi blamed the assault on the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and "official agencies" in Pakistan - a reference to the country's spy service.
After being told the judge who was conducting the hearing would preside over the trial, Mr Iman smiled and replied with the traditional Indian Hindu greeting "Namaste" (taken literally, meaning "I bow to you").
The prosecution has asked the court to postpone the trial to April 13 in order to ready a special high security court in Arthur Road jail.
The charges filed against Mr Iman were also filed against two alleged accomplices, Fahim Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed, both Indian nationals, who police believe gave logistical support to the attackers.
The charge sheet against the three men totals a massive 11,280 pages.
Some 165 people were killed and 308 injured when 10 gunmen arrived in Mumbai by boat and attacked a string of targets including luxury hotels, a crowded railway station, a café and a Jewish centre. Pakistan at first dismissed reports that Mr Iman was a Pakistani but later acknowledged he was.