Sunday, February 09, 2025
Advertisement
  1. You Are At:
  2. News
  3. India
  4. Tahawwur Rana, Mumbai attack convict, extradition to India cleared by US Supreme Court

Tahawwur Rana, Mumbai attack convict, extradition to India cleared by US Supreme Court

India sought the extradition of Tahawwur Rana as he is wanted in the 26/11 terrorist attacks. This also Rana's last legal chance to not be extradited to India.

Edited By: Abhirupa Kundu New Delhi Published : Jan 25, 2025 9:27 IST, Updated : Jan 25, 2025 10:35 IST
Tahawwur Rana
Image Source : FILE 26/11 convict Tahawwur Rana.

The US Supreme Court has cleared Mumbai attack convict Tahawwur Rana’s extradition to India, dismissing his review petition against the move. Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, is wanted in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks, in view of which India sought for the extradition. 

This marked Rana’s last legal chance not to be extradited to India. Earlier, he lost a legal battle in several federal courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the North Circuit in San Francisco. Rana on November 13 filed a “petition for a writ of certiorari” before the US Supreme Court.

This was denied by the apex court on January 21, a day after Donald Trump was sworn in as the American President. “Petition denied,” the Supreme Court said.

26/11 attacks and the Tahawwur Rana's extradition to India 

Rana, 64, is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles. Earlier the US government had argued in the court that the petition for a writ of certiorari should be denied. US Solicitor General Elizabeth B Prelogar said this in its filing before the Supreme Court on December 16.

She said Rana was not entitled to relief from extradition to India in this case. In his ‘petitions for a writ of certiorari to review the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Rana had argued that he was tried and acquitted in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois (Chicago) on charges relating to the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai.

"India now seeks to extradite him for trial on charges based on the identical conduct at issue in the Chicago case,” it said. Prelogar disagreed.

“The government does not concede that all of the conduct on which India seeks extradition was covered by the government’s prosecution in this case. For example, India’s forgery charges are based in part on conduct that was not charged in the United States: petitioner’s use of false information in an application to formally open a branch office of the Immigration Law Center submitted to the Reserve Bank of India,” the US Solicitor General had said.

“It is not clear that the jury’s verdict in this case— which involves conspiracy charges and was somewhat difficult to parse — means that he has been “convicted or acquitted” on all of the specific conduct that India has charged,” Prelogar had said.

166 people killed in a more than 60-hour seige

Rana is known to be associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

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, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

(With PTI inputs)

Advertisement

Read all the Breaking News Live on indiatvnews.com and Get Latest English News & Updates from India

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement