Tunda assaulted inside court premises, remanded to 4-day PC

Notwithstanding tight security, Abdul Karim Tunda, top LeT bomb expert, was on Tuesday assaulted in the premises of a Delhi court which remanded him to four day police custody to quiz him in connection with 37 bomb blast cases across the country.

Tunda was hit on his back and stomach by alleged 'Hindu Sena' activists whose attempt to slap him was thwarted by the escorting police personnel who later formed a human chain to guard him.

The 70-year-old terrorist was produced before Metropolitan Magistrate Jay Thareja who extended his custodial interrogation for four days till August 24.

The Delhi Police had sought Tunda's custody for 10 days for taking him to three different places outside the national Capital for probing his links with various terror outfits.

The police said Tunda was declared a proclaimed offender in a case of recovery of explosive substances lodged in 1994 at south Delhi's Malviya Nagar police station under the provisions of stringent anti-terror law TADA.

Immediately after he was produced in the court, Tunda said he did not have money to hire a lawyer but some advocates volunteered to represent him and advocate M S Khan who had the 'vakalatnama' (power of attorney) was allowed to appear for him.

During the proceedings, which were held in-camera, after a lawyer interrupted it, Tunda told the court that he was "innocent" as he had not motivated anyone to kill women and children by exploding bombs.

Advocate Khan told reporters after the proceedings that Tunda claimed in the court that he used to teach others about 'Jehad' its true meaning which bars any kind of violence.

Tunda was produced in the court after expiry of three days of police custody.

Tunda, an alleged close aide of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, was arrested from the Indo-Nepal border on August 17 after being on the run in several countries for 19 years.

Tunda is one of the 20 terrorists India had asked the Pakistan government to hand over after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack and is suspected to be involved in 40 bombings in the country. He is the first in the list to be arrested.

According to Delhi Police, he is a well known LeT explosive expert wanted for his role in 1993 Mumbai serial train blasts, Delhi bomb blasts of 1997-98 and serial bombings in the state of UP and also at Panipat, Sonepat, Ludhiana and Hyderabad.