But with the authenticity of the telephone interview itself yet to be established and no specific reference to the Indian Mujahideen available in the alleged conversation with the terrorist said to have been holed up in one of the two five-star hotels under siege, the Crime Branch top brass did a swift turnaround as soon as it heard of the remand application. They said it was an “internal error” on the part of the investigating officer who had filed the application without consulting his superiors.

“The corrigendum regarding our earlier application has been filed before the Special MCOCA court today,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rakesh Maria. Another senior Crime Branch officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the investigating officer of the Indian Mujahideen case has clarified to the court that he has nothing to do with the investigations in the 26/11 case, and that he had filed the relevant part of the application on hearsay.

“He has retracted that part of the application, and has apologised to the court for the error. The officer concerned is a well-meaning officer and there is no suspicion of any mischief against him. It was simply an error, and an explanation will be sought from him,” the officer added.

While six of the Indian Mujahideen operatives are in Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail, the rest are in the custody of the Gujarat police in connection with the Ahmedabad and Surat terror cases. The Crime Branch on Friday sought an extension of 60 days to file a chargesheet against them since further investigations needed to be conducted, which was granted by the court.