Mumbai terror attack mastermind Tahawwur Rana to be extradited to India

NEW DELHI: Reports suggest that Tahawwur Rana, the key accused in the Mumbai terror attack case, is being extradited to India on a special flight. The flight is expected to land either tonight or early tomorrow morning. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a plea filed by Rana seeking a stay on his extradition to India. A similar petition submitted by Rana in March was also rejected by the court.

Tahawwur Rana, a businessman with Canadian citizenship and originally from Pakistan, argued in his petition that his life would be at risk in India and that he suffers from health issues, including Parkinson’s disease and cancer. A former doctor in the Pakistani Army, Rana is being extradited under the U.S.-India Extradition Treaty. India had earlier submitted strong evidence to the U.S. government proving his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. In February, former U.S. President Donald Trump had also granted approval for Rana's extradition to India.

The 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008 claimed the lives of 166 people. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had filed a chargesheet against Rana, identifying him as the one who provided crucial support to American national David Coleman Headley in planning the attacks. The NIA also linked him to a terror plot in Denmark and to aiding Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists. In 2013, a Chicago court sentenced him to 14 years in prison for his involvement. Rana had been held at a federal detention facility in Los Angeles.