26/11 plotter Rana to be extradited as US top court rejects plea

The US Supreme Court has paved the way for the extradition of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack accused, Tahawwur Rana, as it turned down the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative's review petition, officials aware of the matter said on Saturday.

- Neeraj Chauhan

A Canadian national of Pakistani origin, Rana had already lost legal battles in several federal courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the North Circuit in San Francisco, against his extradition. This was his last legal challenge to India's attempt to bring him to justice in the country over the deadly 26/11 strike, which killed 166 people, including 24 foreign nationals.

On November 13 last year, he filed a "petition for a writ of certiorari" before the US apex court to review the lower court's ruling, which greenlit his extradition to India. According to the court order, his plea was rejected agencies]. Bringing Rana to India would mean a key [26/11] co-conspirator could soon face the Indian criminal justice system. He went to multiple courts in the US to avoid his extradition, but the evidence regarding his involvement in the attack was irrefutable," said a senior ministry of home affairs (MHA) official on condition of anonymity.

Officials aware of the matter said that India will now send the extradition order to the US Secretary of State, who will certify it and finalise the process of bringing Rana-currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles - to India.