Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana, who was involved in the serial terrorist attacks on November 26 in Mumbai in 2008, is likely to be brought to India soon. The process of bringing Rana to India through diplomatic channels is underway. In August 2024, the US Court of Appeals ruled that Tahawwur Rana could be extradited to India under the extradition treaty between the two countries.
The appellate court had rejected Rana’s plea, in which he had challenged the US District Court’s order to extradite him to India for his involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks. The US Court of Appeals, while upholding the decision of the District Court, held that India has presented sufficient evidence against Tahawwur Rana, which proves that the extradition order was correct. Let us know what role Tahawwur Rana played in 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack…
Mumbai Police had included Tahawwur Rana’s name in its charge sheet in connection with the 26/11 terrorist attack. He is accused of working as an active member of Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba. In the charge sheet, Rana was accused of helping 26/11 terror attack mastermind David Coleman Headley. Tahawwur Rana had done recce of the places where attacks were to be carried out in Mumbai and had prepared a blueprint and handed it over to Pakistani terrorists.
Also read: Return of 26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana to India fixed, US court gives green signal
Tahawwur Rana was David Headley’s childhood friend
Tahawwur Rana is a childhood friend of David Coleman Headley alias Dawood Saeed Geelani. Headley is an American citizen. His mother was American and Tipa was Pakistani. US authorities arrested him from Chicago in October 2009. Headley was sentenced to 35 years in prison by the US court on January 24, 2013 after finding him guilty of his involvement in the Mumbai attacks. Tahawwur Rana studied at Hasan Abdal Cadet School in Pakistan, where Headley also studied for 5 years before shifting to America.
After his stint as a doctor in the Pakistani Army, Tahawwur Rana shifted to Canada and got Canadian citizenship a few years later. He established a consultancy firm named ‘First World Immigration Services’ in Chicago. Rana’s company also had a branch in Mumbai, which helped Headley Coleman Headley in conducting recce of the places in Mumbai which were targeted by the terrorists of Pakistani terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) on November 26, 2008. .
10 terrorists from Pakistan terrorized Mumbai
10 Lashkar terrorists entered Mumbai by sea on November 26, 2008, carrying a huge amount of ammunition and weapons. They massacred at 9 places in Mumbai. The 8 places targeted by the terrorists were in South Mumbai – Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Oberoi Trident Hotel, Taj Hotel, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, Nariman House, Metro Cinema and Times of India Building and the lane behind St. Xavier’s College. . There was also an explosion in a taxi in Mumbai’s port area Mazgaon and Vile Parle.
Also read: Big blow to Mumbai attack convict in US, US government asks court to reject Tahawwur Rana’s petition
By the morning of 28 November, Mumbai Police and security forces had secured all the sites except the Taj Hotel. The help of National Security Guards (NSG) had to be taken to eliminate the terrorists hiding in Taj Hotel. The NSG launched ‘Operation Black Tornado’ on 29 November, which ended with the death of the last remaining attackers at the Taj Hotel, ending a 72-hour terror attack in Mumbai. A total of 166 people, including 6 American citizens, died and more than 300 people were injured in these terrorist attacks.
Rana had done recce of the attack sites in Mumbai
Tahawwur Rana was also arrested by US police soon after the arrest of David Coleman Headley at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport in October 2009. In 2011, he was found guilty by a Chicago court of providing logistics support to Lashkar-e-Taiba for the Mumbai attacks and of planning an attack on the office of a Danish newspaper named Jyllands-Posten (the attack did not take place). Jyllands-Posten newspaper came into controversy in 2005 after publishing a cartoon of the Prophet. David Coleman Headley had told the court during the trial of his case that in July 2006, he had gone to Chicago to meet Tahawwur Rana. Then Rana told him about the Mumbai mission which Lashkar had assigned to him.
Also read: Mumbai attack accused Tahawwur Rana should be handed over to India, Biden administration appeals to the court for extradition.
Tahavur Rana, with the help of David Coleman Headley, established a branch of his firm ‘First World Immigration Service’ in Mumbai. He helped Headley obtain a business visa to India for 5 years. Then Headley got recce done of those places in Mumbai where Lashkar terrorists had attacked on November 26, 2008. In 2011, the NIA filed a charge sheet against nine people, including Tahawwur Rana, for planning and executing the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks. In 2014, a Delhi sessions court issued fresh non-bailable warrants against people whom the NIA had listed in its chargesheet as absconders.
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