India’s 16-year wait ends: 26/11 conspirator Tahawwur Rana flown to Delhi, will face trial

An associate of Lashkar-e-Taiba scout David Coleman Headley, Rana was formally arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) soon after completion of legal formalities at the airport. His medical examination too was done at the airport.

Around 10 pm, he was taken to the Patiala House Courts where he was produced before Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh. The NIA sought his custody for 20 days and the Delhi court has sent him to 18-days NIA custody.

The court, which reserved its order, had not made its decision public until 1 am Friday. At around 2.10 am a spokesperson of the NIA said, “Rana was produced before the NIA Special Court at Patiala House by the NIA after his formal arrest. Rana will remain in NIA custody for 18 days, during which time the agency will question him in detail in order to unravel the complete conspiracy behind the deadly 2008 attacks, in which a total of 166 persons were killed and over 238 injured,” the spokesperson said.

A Pakistani-Canadian businessman who once served in the Pakistan Army Medical Corps, Rana is accused of providing crucial logistical support to the terrorists. He was arrested in Chicago in October 2009, 11 months after the Mumbai attacks.

In a statement, the NIA said it “successfully secured the extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, the mastermind of the deadly 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, after years of sustained and concerted efforts to bring the key conspirator behind the 2008 mayhem to justice”.

“Rana was escorted to New Delhi by teams of NSG and NIA, comprising senior officials, on a special plane from Los Angeles. The NIA investigation team at the airport arrested Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin living primarily in Chicago, soon after he emerged from the airplane, after completing all the necessary legal formalities,” the spokesperson said.

“Rana was being held in judicial custody in the US pursuant to proceedings initiated under the India-US Extradition Treaty for his extradition. The extradition finally came through after Rana exhausted all legal avenues to stay the move,” the NIA said.

“The District Court for the Central District of California had ordered his extradition on 16th May 2023. Rana then filed multiple litigations in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, all of which were rejected. He subsequently filed a petition for a writ of certiorari, two habeas petitions, and an emergency application before the US Supreme Court, which were also denied. The extradition proceedings were initiated between the two countries after India eventually secured a surrender warrant for the wanted terrorist from the US government,” it said.

“With the active assistance of USDoJ, the US Sky Marshal, NIA worked closely with other Indian intelligence agencies, NSG through the entire extradition process, which also saw India’s Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs coordinating with the other relevant authorities in the United States to take the matter to its successful conclusion.”

“Rana is accused of conspiring with David Coleman Headley @ Daood Gilani, and operatives of designated terrorist organisations Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami (HUJI) along with other Pakistan-based co-conspirators, to carry out the devastating terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008. A total of 166 persons were killed and over 238 injured in the deadly attacks. Both LeT and HUJI have been declared as terrorist organisations by the Government of India under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967,” it said.

Rana’s extradition comes two months after US President Donald Trump, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi by his side, told reporters at the White House: “Today, I am pleased to announce that my administration has approved the extradition of one of the plotters, one of the very evil people of the world, connected to the horrific Mumbai terrorist attack, to face justice in India. So, he is going back to India to face justice.”

Responding to this, Modi had said: “I am thankful to the President for his decision to hand over the culprit responsible for the 2008 killings in India. Indian courts will now take appropriate action.”

Ahead of Rana’s arrival, the NIA asked the Delhi Police Nayayik Abhiraksha Vahini, the 3rd Battalion responsible for transporting prisoners from different prisons in Delhi, to send a jail van, along with pilot escorts, to the IGI Airport around 7 am. The Vahini personnel were later told to reach the airport a few hours later since the flight had been delayed due to bad weather conditions.

“At around 5.15 pm, police personnel were called inside the IGI Airport and asked to deposit their cell phones with the authorities concerned. Rana was accompanied by a team of three senior NIA officers headed by an IG-rank officer and officials from intelligence agencies. The team had reached the US on Sunday to obtain custody of Rana. They secured his custody Wednesday evening and departed for Delhi,” a source said.

Throughout the day, security personnel were deployed inside the Patiala House Courts complex. New Delhi DCP Devesh Mahla also visited the complex to review the security arrangements. Yellow ropes and barricades were put up to secure the area.

Near the NIA office, the Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Metro Station’s Gate No. 2 was closed and public movement around the area restricted as a precautionary measure.

A Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) spokesperson said, “Gate No. 2 of the JLN Metro Station, closest to the NIA building, will remain closed as a precaution. The gate will remain closed until further orders from the Delhi Police.”

On Wednesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had called the extradition of Rana a big success of the Modi government. “Rana’s extradition is a big success of Prime Minister Modi’s diplomacy. The Modi government’s effort is to bring to justice those who attack India’s honour, land and people. He will be brought here to face trial and punishment. It is a big success of the Modi government,” Shah said while speaking at the News18 Rising Bharat Summit.

On Thursday, the Congress accused the Modi government of falsely taking credit for Rana’s extradition, saying it was a “culmination of a decade-and-a-half of painstaking diplomatic, legal and intelligence efforts which were initiated, led, and sustained by the UPA government”.

In a statement, Congress leader and former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram said Rana’s extradition was not a “strong leader moment” but a result of “the slow wheels of justice, pushed forward by years of hard work”.