Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a key accused in the Pakistan army orchestrated 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that claimed 166 lives, is slated to arrive in Delhi today, Wednesday following his extradition from the United States.
Official sources said that Rana, who is being brought by a team of Indian intelligence officials, will be kept in the custody of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for a “few” days.
Rana’s extradition comes after the US Supreme Court rejected his final plea to halt the process on 7 April, ending a years-long legal battle in which he had nearly succeeded after a local court ordered his release on “compassionate grounds” in June 2020, as outlined earlier by The Sunday Guardian (Modi government secures extradition of 26/11 mastermind Tahawwur Rana).
This led to a renewed effort from Delhi, which will culminate successfully today with Rana’s arrival.
While the extradition has happened after 16 years and almost all that Rana could reveal, he has already shared with U.S. officials, his arrival is expected to send a message to other fugitives that India will bring back perpetrators, even if it takes decades of effort.
The development is also expected to bolster Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s image of someone who has zero tolerance to terrorism and shine a spotlight on his continued focus on acting tough on terror and fugitives.
Following the U.S. lower court’s decision to release Rana on compassionate grounds, the relevant office of the Government of India, on the directions of Prime Minister Modi, moved swiftly and immediately filed for his provisional arrest.
Officials worked through diplomatic and legal channels to challenge his release and secure his extradition considering the importance of securing justice for the victims and survivors of the attacks.
Sources indicate that he is expected to land in Delhi later today—possibly in the afternoon or evening—though the exact time remains unconfirmed due to security and logistical considerations. High-security arrangements have been prepared in the capital to accommodate him, in line with U.S. judiciary recommendations for extradited individuals.
The NIA is expected to hold Rana in custody for an initial period of several days to weeks for interrogation.
Significantly, this was among the first five cases that NIA had taken up after its inception after the Ministry of Home Affairs through order No ‘11034/10/ 2009-IS.VI’ dated ‘11/11/ 2009’ asked it to investigate it after which a FIR was filed at NIA Police Station, New Delhi as ‘RC-04/2009/NIA/DLI’. The case was investigated by former NIA Inspector General , late Sanjeev Kumar Singh, a 1987 batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer who prepared a foolproof chargesheet.
Among the arguments that Rana raised, albeit unsuccessfully, to stop his extradition in the US Supreme Court was facing the “prospect of transfer to a country where his birthplace (Pakistan), his religion (Muslim), and the nature of the charges (terrorist murder of 166 people) mark him for likely abuse—followed, if he survives pretrial incarceration, by a trial with a predictable result and execution by hanging, per India’s Code of Criminal Procedure.”