NEW DELHI, Feb 25: Police in Mumbai filed charges on Wednesday in what they said was a watertight case against dozens of alleged plotters in the terror attack on India’s financial hub, but there were doubts if the sole surviving gunman they allegedly picked up in Mumbai on Nov 26 would get a defence lawyer of his choice.

Many lawyers have shunned Mohammed Ajmal Kasab in the emotionally charged affair because his defence would hurt their nationalist sentiments, and others have refused to take up the brief for fear of reprisals by Hindu extremists who have warned of dire consequences if they did.

Public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam filed the mammoth charge-sheet against Ajmal Amir Kasab and 35 others, including the Pakistan-based leaders of the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, to the court of a metropolitan magistrate in Mumbai, reports said.

Kasab, who has been under custody since he was arrested three months ago, will now be put under trial for charges of “murder and waging war” against India.

India has blamed Pakistan-based elements, including the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba group, for the attacks in an up-market location of Mumbai.

The submission of the charge-sheet completes the first phase of police investigations into the terrorist attack. The next hearing in the case has been scheduled for March 19.

India’s anti-terrorist squad killed all but one of the 10 gunmen who attacked sites in India’s financial capital and held hostages for three days.

Declaring the case to be watertight, Mumbai Police Joint Commissioner Rakesh Maria was quoted as claiming that officers of the Pakistani Army might have been involved in the attacks.

“We have found in the investigations two names which have designations that could belong to the Pakistan Army. It includes a Major General,” Mr Maria told the media in Mumbai. However, he added, they could also belong to Lashkar ranks.

“There are 35 accused wanted in the case including JuD’s (Jamaat ud Dawa’s) Hafiz Sayeed, LeT’s Lakhvi, Abu Hamza, Hakim, Mursheed etc. and all are Pakistanis. There is evidence of involvement of two Indians — Fahim and Sabbuddin,” he added. Some of these are the men who trained the suspected terrorists in Pakistan and Azad Kashmir, and bought a Yamaha engine for the boat that carried the attackers and sent the terror e-mails.

Providing details about the charge-sheet, Mr Maria was quoted by Indian news agencies as saying that witnesses included eyewitnesses plus medical and forensic experts who are named in the charge-sheet. Identification parade of the corpses of the alleged attackers was also carried out, “probably for the first time in history”.

“We have good evidence. The charge-sheet is very comprehensive and covers all the suspects,” Mr Maria said. The Mumbai Police filed charge-sheet in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in the Qila court in Mumbai. It has mentioned the names of the lone surviving terrorist — Ajmal Amir Kasab and 35 others involved in the terror attack.

Informing the media that the investigation was still ongoing, Mr Maria said the attack resembled a Fidayeen operation.

Two national television channels said the charge-sheet named 19 other people, including Indians and Pakistanis, for planning and abetting the crime.

The charge-sheet contains accounts of more than 100 witnesses as well as other evidence provided by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which helped Indian police with the probe.

Police on Tuesday said evidence also included transcripts of phone calls between the attackers and their ‘handlers’ in Pakistan, video footage from attack sites, and what police say is the confession of Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, the surviving gunman.

If found guilty, Kasab and those charged with waging war with India could face the gallows.

Kasab was captured during the attacks while nine other gunmen, who India says were Pakistani militants, were killed in a 60-hour rampage across two five-star hotels, a Jewish centre and a crowded train station in India’s financial hub.

Analysts said the charges of ‘waging war’ with India mean there is almost no chance Kasab would be handed over to Pakistan for trial.

India has said the Pakistani militants must have been supported by Pakistani security agencies.