 "A painting made by students of Gurukul Art School on the extradition of 26/11 Mumbai attack accused Tahawwur Rana from USA to India, at Lalbaug in Mumbai, May 18, 2023. File Photo/PTI")
United States President Donald Trump has announced the extradition of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks accused, Tahawwur Hussain Rana, to India. In a joint press conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday (February 13) at the White House, Trump confirmed the US’ decision, hinting that more extraditions could come in future.
“We are giving a very violent man (Tahawwur Rana) back to India immediately. There are more to follow because we have quite a few requests. We work with India on crime, and we want to make things better for India,” the US president declared.
Trump’s announcement comes in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s ruling last month dismissing Rana’s review petition, paving the way for his extradition to India.
As the US administration gives a go-ahead to the extradition of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused, we take a look at the status of the case against Rana.
Who is Tahawwur Hussain Rana?
Tahawwur Hussain Rana , 64, is a Canadian national of Pakistani origin accused of aiding Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main plotters of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
After his brief stint as a doctor in the Pakistani Army, Rana shifted to Canada in 1997 and established himself as a businessman offering immigration services. He then relocated to the US, opening First World Immigration Services, a consultancy firm with offices in Chicago and other locations.
Headley, also known as Daood Gilani, got Rana’s approval to open a First World office in Mumbai as a cover for his activities. He used the immigration consultancy to visit India and scout potential targets, including the Taj Hotel and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai, of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists.
“Rana directed an individual associated with First World to prepare documents supporting Headley’s cover story of opening a First World office in Mumbai and advised Headley how to obtain a visa for travel to India, according to Headley’s testimony, as well as emails and other documents that corroborated his account,” according to the US government.
The 2008 Mumbai terror attacks left 166 people, including 20 security force personnel and 26 foreigners, dead and hundreds of others injured at multiple iconic locations in the city.
Headley was arrested in October 2009 by US authorities. He later became an approver in the case and is serving a 35-year sentence.
Rana was arrested in October 2009 at Chicago’s O’Hare airport for arranging material support for terrorist attacks in Mumbai and Copenhagen. On the basis of Headley’s testimony, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
In 2011, Rana was convicted for plotting an attack on the Danish newspaper Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, which had published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in 2005.
The same year, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a chargesheet against nine persons, including Rana, for plotting and executing the Mumbai terror attacks.
As per the over 400-page chargesheet submitted by the Mumbai police in 2023, Rana entered India on November 11, 2008 and stayed until November 21. During his visit, he was at the Renaissance Hotel in Mumbai’s Powai for two days.
The Mumbai crime branch also discovered email communications between Headley and Rana. In one of the emails, Headley asked him about the email ID of Major Iqbal, an operative of the Pakistani intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and another accused in the 26/11 terror plot case, reported The Hindu.
Status of Rana’s extradition
India submitted its request for Rana’s extradition to the US through diplomatic channels on December 4, 2019, as per The Hindu. A complaint seeking his provisional arrest was registered on June 10, 2020.
Rana’s legal battles against India’s extradition request were turned down in the lower courts and various federal courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the North Circuit in San Francisco.
He then filed a “petition for a writ of certiorari” before the US Supreme Court on November 13 to review a lower court ruling. On January 21 this year, the top court rejected Rana’s final legal appeal , clearing the path for his extradition.
Rana is currently held at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles.
What is India doing?
India has long been seeking Rana’s extradition for his role in the horrific Mumbai terror attacks.
After the US Supreme Court rejected Rana’s review petition, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed that “all legal avenues” had been exhausted.
“We are now working with the US side on procedural issues for early extradition to India of the accused in the Mumbai terror attack,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said earlier.
“The legal process allowing Rana’s extradition to India has been completed with the US Supreme Court verdict. However, the final go-ahead has to be given by the US administration. As a new government has been formed only last month, an executive order clearing Rana’s extradition is likely once the new US government settles down,” a government official was quoted as saying by The Hindu last week.
A spokesperson of the US State Department earlier told ANI that America has supported India’s efforts to bring the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice. “In view of the recent Supreme Court decision, and consistent with applicable US law, the Department of State is currently evaluating next steps in this case. We have long supported India’s efforts to ensure the perpetrators of the Mumbai terrorist attacks face justice,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, India has begun preparations to extradite Rana. Sources told Indian Express that an NIA team will be constituted that will share information with the US. These senior officers will travel to the US to complete the formalities and get Rana’s custody.
“Currently, the names of the officers from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) who will go to the US to take his custody are being discussed. Also, a discussion is going on to use either a chartered plane of the R&AW or a normal flight,” a source in the Ministry of Home Affairs said last month.
After his extradition, Rana will reportedly be held in Delhi’s Tihar jail.
With inputs from agencies