26/11 Plotter Tahawwur Rana Extradited, Sent to NIA Custody
The extradition from the US to India of Tahawwur Rana saw him being remanded to 18 days custody.
26/11 Plotter Tahawwur Rana in 18-Day NIA Custody
The extradition from the US to India of Tahawwur Rana, one of the principal accused in the deadly 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, saw him being remanded to 18 days custody by the National Investigation Agency. This is a major step in India’s efforts to track down and bring to justice all co-conspirators of the terror attack that took place in 2008. After years of legal proceedings in the U.S. fighting that country over his extradition, Rana finally arrived in India.
The Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman has been charged with having been a facilitator to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who had coordinated attacks in different places in Mumbai between November 26 and 29, 2008, killing 166 people and injuring hundreds more. He has been accused of providing terrorists with logistical and financial support and is said to have affiliations with David Coleman Headley, a Pakistani-American terrorist who was involved in reconnaissance missions prior to the attack and later became an approver.
As per Indian investigators, Rana used his immigration firm in Chicago as a front to actually cover for Headley’s movements within India. Much testimony has been recounted of Headley by Rana having had knowledge of the proceedings for the great 26/11 event and even having assisted him in securing some documents for reconnaissance operations in Mumbai. The extradition request format of Indian authorities came into being formally in 2020 after fresh charges were framed against him with the NIA.
The extradition finally came through once the processes in U.S. courts cleared out with the finding that there was, prima facie, a case against Rana under the Indian laws. The NIA were the ones who took custody of him after he arrived in India and produced him before a special court in Delhi which allowed the agency to understate it for 18 days for interrogation. Apart from this, the NIA will also question him on his closeness with his LeT handlers, sources of funding, and knowledge of operational details of the attacks.
It is the first time that Indian agencies are likely to have direct access to Rana since the opening of the case against him on 26/11. His testimony is expected to give a complete picture of the conspiracy and the international support network for the attacks. Rana’s extradition sends indeed a strong message about global cooperation in fighting terrorism that India continues to argue for accountability for all those involved in perhaps the worst attack on its soil.
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As per sources, Rana would be put under a heavy security blanket, and interrogation would include possible further terror links and what he knew before about the attacks that could happen next. The NIA is also to confront him with documentation, digital evidence, and past testimony from Headley.
Once again, Rana would be tried in India. Earlier, he had been found guilty in the U.S. in 2011 for offering material support to LeT and had been acquitted of the count related to the Mumbai attacks. His return to India will start a new chapter in the investigation, providing rare opportunities for Indian authorities to glean from him even more international dimensions of the 26/11 conspiracy.
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