Mumbai, Dec. 18: Pakistani gunman Mohammed Ajmal Kasab today retracted his confession of guilt, claimed he had been falsely implicated and made a reference to US terror suspect David Headley in a courtroom drama aimed at derailing the 26/11 trial.

A number of eyewitnesses have identified Kasab and CCTV cameras at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus have captured him blazing away.

But Kasab made seemingly bizarre claims, contradicting his July 20 voluntary confession made before judge M.L. Tahilyani as well as the one recorded before a magistrate in February.

The 22-year-old said he was not a terrorist, had not fired at commuters at CST and had never ever seen an AK-47 before he was put on trial.

He said he travelled from Pakistan to New Delhi by the Samjhauta Express and came to Mumbai 20 days before 26/11 to find a house.

Special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said Kasab’s retraction would have no impact on the trial as the prosecution had produced adequate evidence of Kasab’s role in the terror attacks.

“We have produced sufficient evidence consisting of photographs, CCTV footage, and 610 witnesses to nail him,” he said.

Leading criminal lawyer Majid Memon agreed. “It is a mere formality. The accused is expected to deny all charges framed against him,” he said.

Kasab also attempted to throw the prosecution off track by mentioning the name of Headley, the alleged Lashkar-e-Toiba operative arrested in the US.

Kasab said “four white men” — a reference to the FBI team that visited Mumbai — had come to interrogate him and seemed to indicate that Headley was among them. However, as soon as he mentioned the name “Headley”, the judge stopped him and warned him to only reply to questions he had been asked.

Nikam said Kasab had deliberately made references to Headley in a bid to prolong the trial.

“He is very clever and knows how to pick up leads from court proceedings. Headley’s name was referred in the court earlier and he may have picked up the reference,” he said.

The gunman doesn’t have access to newspapers and lives in solitary confinement in a heavily guarded cell.

Kasab’s astonishing retraction came around 11.30am when he was called to record his statement on the evidence presented by the prosecution.

Dressed in white kurta-pyjama and sporting a stubble, Kasab set the tone for the proceedings with his third answer.

When Tahilyani wanted his address after asking him his name and age, Kasab replied: “Faridkot, Punjab.”

When the judge asked him if this was in Pakistan, Kasab said: “Main toh Pakistan se aaye hoon. Faridkot aur Punjab India mein bhi hain. Yeh toh government ko tay karna hai (I came from Pakistan. But Faridkot and Punjab are there in India also. It is for the government to say where I came from).”

Tahilyani had drawn up a questionnaire based on the evidence given by the 610 prosecution witnesses.

Kasab, who kept smiling all through, replied in the negative to most questions saying “nahi ji”, “pata nahi”, “woh main nahi tha”, and “yeh sab jhoot hai”.

When the judge asked him about his arrest, Kasab said he was walking along Juhu beach around 2.30 in the night, with his passport and Sony Ericsson mobile, when he was accosted by police. “Pata nahi kidhar gaya mobile aur passport. Police ne liya hoga. Main picture ke chakkar mein aaya tha (I don’t know where my mobile and passport went, police may have taken them. I had come looking for a break in films).”

Kasab claimed he was falsely implicated because he resembles another gunman Abu Ali, who was shot dead.

When the judge asked him about his confession before the magistrate, Kasab said: “Mujhe mara pita gaya. Purey galat bayan par meri dastkhat li gayi (I was beaten up. My signature was taken forcibly on a wrong statement).”

gunman’S FLIP-FLOP

Judge: Address

Kasab: Faridkot, Punjab. I came from Pakistan. But Faridkot and Punjab are there in India also. It is for the government to say where I came from

On landing at Badhwar Park in a dinghy wearing saffron jackets and carrying haversacks
They (witnesses) may have seen, but I don’t know

Travelling in dinghy fitted with Yamaha engine
I saw a dinghy for the first time in court

His arrest
I was arrested when I was strolling on Juhu beach 20 days before 26/11. Picture ke chakkar mein aaya tha. I came from Pakistan in the Samjhauta Express to Delhi (before
arriving in Mumbai)

On David Coleman-Headley
Four white men were present when I was interrogated. Headley... (Judge Tahilyani stopped him and told him he should reply only to specific questions)

His confession before magistrate
I was beaten up and forced to confess

On planting a bomb in a taxi
Statement taken forcibly

On testimony of eyewitnesses at CST
I was not there. My face looks similar to the short terrorist at CST

On witnesses identifying him during the identification parade
Manipulated by the police

On killing officers at CST
I don’t know. I couldn’t have dared to

On exchanging fire with police at CST
That did not happen. It happened between the terrorists and the police

On CCTV cameras capturing him firing at CST
I am not the one seen in the CCTV

On his July 20 in-court confession
That story was given to me in Urdu by the police. I memorised it

On telling the judge specifically he was the man in the CCTV footage screened in court?
It’s false

On why he made July 20 confession
I thought I would be punished and sent to another jail