'Headley's claim that Ishrat was from LeT baseless'

Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative David Headley's reported claim that Ishrat Jahan, killed in an encounter with police in Gujarat in 2004, was a suicide bomber of the terror outfit has been contested by the father of the man killed along with her.

Gopinatha Pillai said on Wednesday that the Pakistani- American's reported claim made to National Investigative Agency personnel about 19-year-old Ishrat during his questioning in the United States was an attempt to derail his struggle to bring to light the "whole truth" about the controversial encounter.

Headley has confessed to his involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and is presently in custody in Chicago.

"This can only be seen as an attempt to create a smoke-screen when the hearing on the petition filed by me in Gujarat court seeking justice is slated to begin this month", Pillai, who is in his 70s, told PTI from his home at Charumood in Alappuzha district. Pillai had worked in the military service.

Pillai's son Javed Sheikh alias Pranesh Kumar and Ishrat along with two Pakistanis were killed in the encounter on June 15, 2004. Gujarat police has claimed that Javed and Ishrat were part of a suicide squad on its way to eliminate Chief Minister Narendra Modi to avenge the 'massacre' of Muslims.

"My lawyer has told me that media reports of Headley claiming that Ishrat was a member of the terror squad need not be taken as truth and they formed part of a design to weaken my case", Pillai said.

Pillai said Ishrat and his son had visited his Kerala home some time before they were killed and he was certain she was not the type of person to have terrorist links.

He said he had no reason to deviate from his earlier stand that his son or Ishrat were innocent and that he would continue his struggle for justice.

Pranesh married a Muslim woman while living in Pune after which he converted to Islam and changed his name to Javed Sheikh.

Pillai has been maintaining that his son and Ishrat were killed in a fake encounter staged by the Gujarat police.

On Tuesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party said the "important disclosure" byHeadley about Ishrat made it incumbent on the Central government to admit or deny the existence of this position.