Headley claims Bal Thackeray was on LeT hit list, Sena says “feel proud” about it

In a shocking revelation, the arrested Pakistani-American terrorist-turned-approver, David Headley told a Mumbai court that the terror outfit Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) wanted to kill the late Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, but the person assigned for this got arrested by the police.

Headley, who was being cross-examined via a video-link from the US, disclosed this information to a court in Mumbai.

Headley said that the LeT wanted to kill the late Shiv Sena chief wherever a chance arose, but claimed he had no first hand knowledge. “I don’t know how this attempt was made. I think the person (who was sent to kill Thackeray) was arrested but he managed to escape from police custody. I don’t have first hand knowledge about this though,” Headley told the court. He claimed to be in the dark about who else was on the target of the terror group apart from Thackeray.

Headley also confessed that he had himself visited the Sena Bhawan twice, but did not specify the year.

Yesterday, Headley spilled the beans on how once US financed his trip to Pakistan, after his arrest in 1998, and also claimed that he had “donated” about Rs 70 lakh to LeT till 2006, two years before the Mumbai attacks. He refused to accept that he received money from LeT, calling it “complete nonsense”. He, however, confessed that he had donated more than 60 to 70 lakh Pakistani Rupees to LeT throughout the period he was associated with them and that his last donation was in 2006.

Reacting to this news, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told ANI that he was proud that Thackeray was on the list of LeT.

“A killer was hired by the LeT to kill Shiv Sena chief but the mission failed. In this case, the Mumbai Police also arrested a suspect but he ran away from police custody. I would like to ask that why the police hid this fact. Who was that person who ran away from the prison and how did he escape? What was the conspiracy behind this? The Mumbai Police and the then government have to answer these questions. The then Police Commissioner should be questioned,” Raut told ANI, while adding, “It is no surprise for us as Bal Sahib has always been a true nationalist and has always been against the notorious activities carried out by Pakistan and terrorists. We feel proud that Bal Sahib was on the hit list of LeT.”

With inputs from PTI

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About Suyash Karangutkar

Suyash Karangutkar is a young, dedicated and an enthusiastic journalist who has a deep interest in National and International Affairs. He is an ardent political spectator who finds politics fascinating. At Spectralhues, he heads the Mumbai team and covers National Affairs & Politics. He also occasionally writes columns for Spectralhues. He can be followed on Twitter @columnistsuyash