NEW DELHI, April 10 – India on Thursday took custody of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistani-origin Canadian-American, after his extradition from the United States in connection with the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, authorities said. Rana, 63, was formally arrested by India’s federal counter-terrorism agency, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), after landing in New Delhi, ending a years-long legal battle under the India-U.S. Extradition Treaty.
The NIA produced Rana before a special court at Delhi’s Patiala House on Thursday night, seeking his custody for interrogation. The court proceedings are being overseen by Special Judge Chander Jit Singh. Senior advocate Dayan Krishnan is representing the prosecution, while Piyush Sachdeva from the Delhi Legal Services Authority has been appointed to defend Rana.
Rana, a former Pakistani military doctor, was accused of aiding David Coleman Headley, a key Lashkar-e-Taiba operative and a U.S. citizen, in planning the attacks that killed 166 people in Mumbai in November 2008. The NIA alleges Rana helped Headley obtain a fake visa and establish a cover identity for reconnaissance missions in India.
Pakistan has sought to distance itself from the case, with foreign ministry spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan saying Rana had not renewed his Pakistani documents in over two decades and was a Canadian national. The extradition follows years of legal proceedings in the U.S., beginning with a 2018 trial and culminating in the U.S. Supreme Court rejecting Rana’s final plea earlier this month.
While the Indian government hailed the development, the opposition Congress party accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration of taking undue credit. “This is the outcome of diplomatic and legal efforts initiated during the previous UPA government,” former Home Minister P. Chidambaram said in a statement.
Security was heightened in Delhi ahead of Rana’s arrival, with access restricted near key government buildings, including the National Investigation Agency headquarters. India has long sought Rana’s extradition, particularly after the U.S. refused to hand over Headley, who is serving a 35-year sentence after entering a plea deal in 2010. Rana’s return could revive a trial that lay dormant for years after the execution of Ajmal Kasab, the only 26/11 attacker captured alive. Officials say Rana’s questioning could shed light on the wider conspiracy behind the attacks.
