'Great victory for India': Ujjwal Nikam on extradition of 26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana

Special Public Prosecutor during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case Ujjwal Nikam on Thursday termed the US court’s approval for extradition of the case accused Tahawwur Rana as “a great victory for India”. “The order of the American court extraditing Tahawwur Rana (26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused) is a great victory for India. It is for the first time according to my knowledge, American govt has heavily relied upon Indian investigation agency’s evidence…,” said the senior lawyer.

#WATCH | "The order of the American court extraditing Tahawwur Rana (26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused) is a great victory for India. It is for the first time according to my knowledge, American govt has heavily relied upon Indian investigation agency's evidence...": Ujjwal… pic.twitter.com/R8SEvxZoO7

— ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2023

Nikam said Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Rana’s extradition order will help India in many way. “It is a major breakthrough…extradition order of Tahawwur Rana will help us in many ways, for opening the entire gate of the criminal conspiracy…,” Nikam said. On 10 June, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the provisional arrest of 62-year-old Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden Administration had supported and approved the extradition of Rana to India. The US court has consented to the Indian request, through the US Government, for the extradition of Rana to India where he is sought for his involvement in the case. “The Court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing,” Judge Jacqueline Chooljian, US Magistrate Judge of the US District Court Central District of California, said in a 48-page court order dated 16 May, which was released on Wednesday. There is an extradition treaty in place between India and the United States. The judge ruled that the extradition of Rana to India is fully under the jurisdiction of the treaty. “His role has been vividly explained by (Lashar-e-Taiba operative) David Headley, whom I had examined during his deposition (before the special court in Mumbai),” Nikam said. From providing logistical support to being in touch with the Pakistan Army officials, Headley had explained everything, Nikam added. Headley, who turned an approver, had deposed before the Mumbai sessions court through a video-link from the US during the case trial. Rana was arrested in the US on an extradition request by India for his role in these attacks. India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) is conducting a probing into his role in the 26/11 attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists. The NIA has said it is ready to initiate proceedings to bring him to India through diplomatic channels. Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving Pakistani gunman in the Mumbai carnage, was awarded death sentence by a special Mumbai court in 2010 for the mass murders and waging a war against India. He was hanged to death at the Yerwada jail in Maharashtra’s Pune city in November 2012. A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege from the night of 26 November, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of the city. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.