Washington, Jan 28 (IANS) The United States’ State Department is “evaluating next steps” in regard to Tahawwur Rana’s extradition to India that was upheld last week by the country’s Supreme Court, clearing the way for him to finally face justice for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks.
Rana is of Pakistani descent like David Coleman Headley, who is serving a long prison sentence in an US jail after pleading guilty for his complicity in the 2008 terrorist attacks in a deal with American authorities that protects him from extradition.
“In view of the recent Supreme Court decision, and consistent with applicable US law, the Department of State is currently evaluating next steps in this case,” a spokesperson for the agency said in response to an IANS request for information on the next steps following the court order and when is he likely to be despatched to India.
“We have long supported India’s efforts to ensure the perpetrators of the Mumbai terrorist attacks face justice,” the spokesperson added.
The US has indeed been supportive of Indian efforts to bring the perpetrators of the attacks that left 167 people dead, including six Americans, and hundred wounded.
It has pushed Pakistan, where the terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Toiba were based and where they had been trained by the country’s Intelligence service, to punish the perpetrators.
The US also helped India’s case before the UN Security Council for designating Masood Azhar, the founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, an international terrorist, leading a group of permanent members to stymie Chinese attempts to block the effort.
For now, however, it seems unclear how soon Rana will be on a plane to India.
Rana was arrested by the US police in October 2009, just two weeks after Headley’s arrest, on three counts: Conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism in India, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism in Denmark, and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organisation, according to a US court document.
Rana was convicted in June 9, 2011 by a jury of the terrorism conspiracy-charge related to Denmark and providing material support to Lashkar, but he was acquitted of the terrorism conspiracy related to the Mumbai attacks.
He was sentenced by the district court in 2013 to 14 years in prison. But after serving half of the sentence he applied for and was granted compassionate release in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
India had been moving, in the meantime, against him. On August 28, 2018, a Mumbai court in August 2018 issued a warrant for Rana’s arrest on charges related to the attacks, including, according to a US court document, (1) conspiracy to (a) wage war, (b) commit murder, (c) commit forgery for the purpose of cheating, (d) use as genuine a forged document or electronic record, and (e) commit a terrorist attack; (2) waging war; (3) murder; and (4) committing a terrorist act (2). India subsequently requested Rana’s extradition.
The day after Rana was granted compassionate release, the US Department of Justice filed a complaint for his provisional arrest in response to an extradition request from India.
A US court that deals with extradition cases rejected his claims in May 2023 and certified his extradition, dismissing his claims, according to the court document, (1) his extradition to India was barred under the Non Bis in Idem provision of the Extradition Treaty Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of India (the Treaty) and (2) India’s evidence against Rana failed to establish probable cause that Rana committed the offenses for which the certification of extradition was sought.
Basically, Rana had argued, he cannot be extradited to face charges on which he had been acquitted in the US.
Every court has rejected Rana’s claims and he may have exhausted his legal options.
–IANS
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