26/11 Mumbai terror attack mastermind Tahawwur Rana successfully extradited from the US, arrested: NIA

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday said it had formally arrested Tahawwur Hussain Rana, the key conspirator in the deadly 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks immediately on his arrival at New Delhi’s IGI Airport after successfully securing his extradition “after years of sustained and concerted efforts to bring the key conspirator behind the 2008 mayhem to justice”.

Rana, 64, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin living primarily in Chicago, was escorted to New Delhi by teams of the National Security Guard (NSG) and NIA, comprising senior officials, on a special plane from Los Angeles.

The NIA investigation team at the airport arrested Rana soon after he emerged from the airplane, after completing all the necessary legal formalities.

In the US, Rana was being held in judicial custody pursuant to proceedings initiated by the NIA under the India-US Extradition Treaty.

The extradition finally came through after Rana’s various litigations and appeals, including an emergency application before the US Supreme Court, were rejected with the active assistance of US Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, US Marshals Service, the FBI’s Legal Attache Office in New Delhi, and US Department of State’s Office of the Legal Adviser for Law Enforcement. the premier anti-terror agency said in a statement.

The diligent and persistent efforts of India’s Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs culminated in securing the surrender warrant for the fugitive, leading to his eventual extradition, the NIA said, adding that it “has worked closely with other Indian intelligence agencies through the entire extradition process, which marked a major step in India’s efforts to bring individuals involved in terrorism to justice, irrespective of which part of the world they had fled to”.

Noting that the District Court for the Central District of California had ordered Rana’s extradition on May 16, 2023, it said that he 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, the NIA said in the statement.

The NIA said that Rana is accused of conspiring with David Coleman Headley @ Daood Gilani, and operatives of designated terrorist organisations, the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami (HUJI), along with other Pakistan-based coconspirators, to carry out the devastating terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008. A total of 166 persons were killed and over 238 were injured in the deadly attacks.

Both the LeT and HUJI have been declared as terrorist organisations by the Indian government under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967, the NIA statement added.

Meanwhile, security arrangements have been tightened at the NIA headquarters and Patiala House Court in the national capital ahead of Rana’s arrival to face trial in India for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Rana, who is believed to have had close ties with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the terror outfit LeT, faces multiple serious charges under Indian law. These include criminal conspiracy, waging war against India, murder, forgery, and violations under the UAPA.

Sources said the extradition was directly overseen by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, along with top officials from the NIA and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

After his arrival, Rana is likely to be lodged in a high-security ward at Delhi’s Tihar Jail and produced before a Delhi court.

IANS