'Glad the day has come': US state secy hails extradition

The US extradited Mumbai terror attacks co-conspirator Tahawwur Rana to India to face charges in line with its long-standing support for New Delhi's efforts to bring to justice those responsible for the incident, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said on Friday.

- Rezaul H Laskar

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Friday granted the National Investigation Agency (NIA) 18 days of custodial interrogation of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a key accused in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, emphasising the importance of providing NIA with a "fair chance to thoroughly investigate the matter".

Special NIA Judge Chander Jit Singh, while allowing NIA's plea in the early hours of Friday, also noted satisfaction that the agency presented "enough material" reflecting a prima facie case and the "potential role of accused".

Rana, a 64-year-old Canadian citizen and former captain in the Pakistan army, arrived in Delhi on a special aircraft at around 6 pm after a stop in Dubai on Friday. He was immediately arrested by NIA, underwent a medical examination, and was subsequently produced before the Patiala House court late Friday night.

According to NIA, Rana conspired with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley, who was convicted in the US for his role in the attacks, to conduct reconnaissance of targets in Mumbai. Furthermore, the agency stated that Rana was involved in planning attacks on the National Defence College (NDC) in Delhi and Chabad Houses in various cities.

NIA also accused Rana of conspiring with operatives of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami (HUJI), both designated terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), along with other Pakistan-based co-conspirators.

The court order, seen by HT, detailed the proceedings that took place late Friday night, noting that Rana was produced at 10:50 pm and informed the court that he did not have legal representation. The court promptly provided him with legal aid counsel from the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Piyush Sachdev and Lakshya Dheer.