Mumbai attack trial begins, gunman says from Pakistan

By Rina Chandran

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Sometimes breaking into laughter, the man accused of being the lone surviving gunman in last year's Mumbai attacks told an Indian court on Monday that he was from Pakistan and wanted legal assistance, officials said.

The trial of Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, whom police formally charged in February with "waging war" against India, began on Monday via a video link with his prison in Mumbai. Gunmen killed 166 people in a three-day rampage in the city last November.

A bearded Kasab smiled and looked composed when the judge asked him whether he had received a copy of the charges and if he wanted an attorney, a government lawyer said.

"I don't have a lawyer," special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam quoted him as telling the judge.

"He was smiling throughout and said that he was from Faridkot in Pakistan," Nikam said. "He started laughing when the judge asked him if he understood everything in the charge sheet."

The attacks on India's financial hub sparked renewed tensions between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan. New Delhi says state agencies in Pakistan were involved in the attacks, while Islamabad denies this and has asked for more evidence.

Police say Kasab was one of 10 gunmen who arrived in Mumbai by sea and rampaged through landmarks including five star hotels, the main train station and a Jewish center.

Police say Kasab, who faces a maximum sentence of death by hanging, was injured in a shootout. Pictures of the young man, wearing sneakers and carrying an automatic rifle and backpack, were published around the world after the attacks.

Kasab has since been held in jail, with Indian lawyers refusing to defend him.

LOOKING FOR A LAWYER

"He had earlier requested legal assistance from Pakistan. We need some more time to appoint a lawyer to defend him," Nikam told the judge. The case will be heard again on March 30.

Authorities have cited security fears as behind the decision to not produce Kasab in person for the hearings till a special bomb-proof concrete cage inside a Mumbai jail is ready.

Police and jail officers have said Kasab, who on Monday was wearing a black T-shirt and blue jeans, has been cooperating.

"He has confessed that he is from Pakistan and has also asked the court for legal assistance," Rakesh Maria, the chief investigator in the case, told Reuters.

Two Indians -- Fahim Ansari and Sabauddin -- accused of being members of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group and of scouting Mumbai landmarks before the attacks also appeared in court by video conference.