Swami takes back confession

In yet another twist to the Ajmer blast probe, Swami Aseemanand, who had confessed his role in the Ajmer, Mecca masjid, Malegaon and the Samjhota Express blasts, retracted his statement, accusing investigating agencies of forcing him to confess. At an Ajmer court on Tuesday, Aseemanand submitted a letter to the court which said: I have been pressurised mentally and physically by the investigating agencies to 'confess that I was behind these blasts. According to sources at the Ajmer court, he also said he was threatened and pressured to become a government witness in the case. He has also requested the court to reject his previous application in which he had wished to become a witness in the Ajmer blast case, sources said. Aseemanand reportedly told the court he has no wish to turn approver in the case. He and three other accused in the Ajmer blast probe, including Harshad Solanki, Bharat Rateshwar and Mukesh Vasani, were produced in the Ajmer court where Aseemanand handed his application. In his letter he also accused the Rajasthan ATS (handling the case so far) of not letting him hire a lawyer in the case. According to sources, Aseemanand has also written to the President about his alleged harassment by investigators. Meanwhile, the ATS again failed to file a charge-sheet against Assemanand and the other accused and has requested the court to wait till April 8. Also, the Rajasthan government decided to hand over the investigation into the Ajmer dargah blast case to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). However, the Rajasthan ATS declined to comment. A senior official said the investigation was genuine and that they did not want to comment about Aseemanands application to the court. Senior lawyers said Swami told the court that the CBI and NIA put pressure on him to confess his role in the blasts, and allegedly threatened to fix him in false cases and put his family in jail. It was Aseemanands confession to the CBI that exposed the intricate network of people and groups responsible for the series of blasts in Malegaon, Ajmer, the Samjhota Express and Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad.