Yasin Bhatkal, co-founder of Indian Mujahideen, being taken to court
Yasin Bhatkal, co-founder of banned terror group Indian Mujahideen, has asked that he be put under 24x7 CCTV surveillance at the Hyderabad Jail where he is lodged, as he fears a threat to his life, his lawyer told NDTV today.
The lawyer, Shaik Saifullah, also said that Bhatkal has in an earlier appeal sought "sunshine, air and clean water" as his seven-feet-by-seven-feet cell in Cherlapally jail has none of these.
"We have requested him to be put under surveillance not just inside jail but also when he is taken to court and back," Mr Saifullah said, referencing the killing of five undertrials while being brought to a court in Hyderabad recently.
Bhatkal, 32, had on Monday pulled out a letter from his pocket when he was produced in court, and had thrown it towards reporters gathered there. The hand-written letter denied reports that he had talked about "help from Damascus" and a plan to escape from jail in a telephone conversation with his wife.
Bhatkal along with four others was brought in a bus filled with policemen, who surrounded him closely as he walked into court, which was hearing the Dilsukhnagar blast case. 17 people had died in the twin blasts in the Hyderabad locality in 2013.
Sources have told NDTV that Intelligence agencies had about a month ago intercepted Yasin Bhatkal's phone conversation with his wife, in which he allegedly indicated that he might get help from the Islamic State - which controls large swathes of territory in both Syria and Iraq - to escape prison.
This has raised concern on whether he has been in touch with the IS from jail. Jail authorities claim it is impossible for Bhatkal to access a mobile phone. The call to his wife was an authorised one made from an official phone.
Some members of the Indian Mujahideen who fled India have allegedly fought for the Islamic State, say security officials.