Convicted Pakistani gunman Ajmal Kasab was given the judgment copy of his case,sentencing him to death on five counts and life imprisonment on another four,inside his high-security cell at Arthur Road Prison on Friday. According to sources,Kasab had calmly accepted the judgment copy and kept it in a corner of his cell along with his other literature like novels and a copy of the Quran. Deputy Inspector General (DIG),Prisons,Rajendra Dhamne said,We were given the copy on Friday and it has been handed over to him. Kasab has a 60 days appeal period,during which he can challenge his conviction in the High Court. He needs to write an appeal,which can only be a few lines informing his intention to challenge the lower court order,and hand it over to the prison officials. A jail petition will be forwarded to the Bombay High Court by us. According to the prison manual,any convict who is not represented by a lawyer and wants to appeal against a conviction can inform the same to authorities of prison where he is lodged. The officials will then write to the high court in a pre-decided format available with the jail,wherein details of the case in which the accused is convicted,and charges are listed. The letter is sent to the High Courts appeal department along with the brief jail petition written by the convict. Acting on this,the high court will need to appoint a legal aid lawyer for the accused. The lawyer goes through the judgment copy and drafts the appeal. As per procedures,the special sessions court will also be sending the judgment to the High Court for confirmation,which will be done soon. The appeal and confirmation will be heard simultaneously by the High Court. The life of Kasab,prisoner no C-7096,has not changed much from his undertrial days. He has not been shifted from the Arthur Road Prison,which is mostly for undertrials,owing to the high-risk perception to his life.
