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As the United States (US) Supreme Court denied the petition of the Tahahwwur Hussain Rana, convicted for his role in the Mumbai terror attacks, paving the way for his extradition to India, advocate Ujjwal Nikam, who was the public prosecutor in the case in Mumbai, welcomed the decision and said that his extradition can reveal more about the involvement of Pakistan people from its security apparatus.
He apprised about revelations by the co-conspirator in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, David Headly, to the court in Mumbai, saying that he had produced email correspondence showing links between Lashkar-e-Taiba and Pakistan ISI Army officers. "It's a great success for India because the Supreme Court of America has dismissed the review petition of Tahawwur Rana. I say it's a success for India because Tahawwur Rana and David Headley are the close links behind the terror attack of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. By extraditing Tahawwur Rana, India will get more information and evidence of the involvement of some of the Pakistani people, including the Pakistan security apparatus. David Headley has given such revelation and evidence in Mumbai court and also produced the email correspondence showing the links between Lashkar-e-Taiba and Pakistan ISI Army officers. I am very optimistic that the extradition of Tahawwur Rana will give more evidence about the involvement of some of the security apparatus of Pakistan," Nikam told ANI. Pakistani origin businessman Tahawwur Hussain Rana who was convicted for his role in the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai that resulted in the death of 164 people could now be extradited to India. Rana's co-conspirators included, among others, David Headley. Headley pleaded guilty and cooperated against Rana. On January 21, The US Supreme Court denied a petition of writ of certiorari filed by Rana seeking to prevent his extradition to India. The writ was filed in November 2024 against an earlier order of a lower court that had ruled in favour of his extradition to India. A writ of certiorari is a legal document that allows a higher court to review a case from a lower court. This could pave the way for his likely extradition to India. Rana was previously prosecuted in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The second superseding indictment charged him with three counts. The jury convicted him on Count 11 (conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism in Denmark). The jury also convicted Rana on Count 12 (providing material support to Lashkar-e Taiyba). On January 7, 2013, the Northern District of Illinois court sentenced Rana to 168 months in prison. On June 10, 2020, a Magistrate Judge in the Central District of California (where Rana was serving his sentence) signed a provisional arrest warrant with a view to extraditing him to India to face charges there. India's charges consist of conspiracy to commit various offences, including to wage war, to murder, to commit two forms of forgery, and to commit a terrorist act. Rana has remained in custody throughout the extradition process. Rana opposed extradition but on May 16, 2023, the extradition magistrate judge rejected Rana's arguments and certified that he was extraditable. Rana then petitioned the United States District Court for the Central District of California for a writ of habeas corpus. On August 15, 2024, the Ninth Circuit Court affirmed the judgment of the habeas court. The court rejected each of Rana's arguments. On Nov 13, 2024, Rana filed a writ of certiorari against that verdict in the Supreme Court which the court has now denied. (ANI)
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