Blast accused threatens to hang himself

MUMBAI, May 5: An alleged conspirator in the Mumbai bomb blasts today threatened to hang himself to death if the jail authorities did not permit him to be hospitalised.

Pervez Zulfikar Kureshi, who came to the TADA court with a bloodied arm, told judge P D Kode that he had inflicted blade wounds on his hand to protest against the jail warden’s attitude towards him since the time he has been imprisoned. Kureshi said the court had permitted him to be sent to a hospital for treatment , but the warden was delaying the matter.

He even went to the extent of saying he was prepared to plead guilty if that made any difference to his treatment in jail. He pleaded that either he should be awarded the death sentence, or he would end up taking his own life. Judge Kode took the jail authorities to task for failing to implement his orders regarding Kureshi, and ordered them to look into the matter without further delay.