Washington, January 25 (PTI): An attorney for Mumbai-attack convict Tahawwur Rana has urged the US Supreme Court to review the lower court’s decision to extradite him to India, citing the principle of double jeopardy which prevents a person from being tried or punished twice for the same offence.

India is seeking the extradition of Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, as he is wanted in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks case.

Having lost the legal battle in lower courts and several federal courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the North Circuit in San Francisco, Rana had filed a “petition for a writ of certiorari” before the US Supreme Court on November 13.

On December 16, US Solicitor General Elizabeth B Prelogar urged the Supreme Court to reject the petition. Rana’s counsel Joshua L Dratel, in his response on December 23, challenged the US Government’s recommendation and pleaded with the Supreme Court that his writ be accepted.

In a long battle, this is Rana’s last legal chance not to be extradited to India.

“The (Supreme) Court should grant the writ. On the merits, it should hold that the term “offence” in the double jeopardy provision of the United States-India extradition treaty (and many other similar treaties) refers to the conduct underlying the charges in the two countries, rather than the elements of the crimes the respective countries have charged,” Dratel argued.

Rana, currently lodged in a jail in Los Angeles, faces charges for his role in the Mumbai attacks and is known to be associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

In his ‘petitions for a writ of certiorari’ to review the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Rana argued that he was tried and acquitted in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois (Chicago) on charges relating to the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai.

“India now seeks to extradite him for trial on charges based on the identical conduct at issue in the Chicago case,” it said.

Prelogar disagreed.

“The government does not concede that all of the conduct on which India seeks extradition was covered by the government’s prosecution in this case,” the US Solicitor General had said.

“For example, India’s forgery charges are based in part on conduct that was not charged in the United States: petitioner’s use of false information in an application to formally open a branch office of the Immigration Law Center submitted to the Reserve Bank of India,” she said.

“It is not clear that the jury’s verdict in this case—which involves conspiracy charges and was somewhat difficult to parse—means that he has been “convicted or acquitted” on all of the specific conduct that India has charged,” Prelogar said.

A total of 166 people, including six Americans, were killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 10 Pakistani terrorists laid a more than 60-hour siege, attacking and killing people at iconic and vital locations of Mumbai.

NDTV Explainer: What Next For Tahawwur Rana After Losing Extradition Appeal

Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, had earlier worked as a doctor for the Pakistan Army

Mumbai attacks convict Tahawwur Hussain Rana has exhausted his legal options to evade extradition to India. This clears the obstacles to bring him back to face the charges for what is counted among the deadliest terror attacks across the world.

The 2008 terror attacks shook Mumbai, the financial capital of the country. At least 166 people were killed in the attacks by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a banned outfit.

Ajmal Kasab, the sole attacker who was caught alive, was the only convict executed in the case. Two more masterminds are yet to be brought to justice, Rana being one of them.

Another is Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal, an Indian operative who worked for the Lashkar terror group. He was arrested in 2012 after being identified by Kasab and is currently imprisoned in Mumbai.

Who Is Tahawwur Rana?

Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, had earlier worked as a doctor for the Pakistan Army. He had prior knowledge of the attacks, and a federal jury convicted him of helping Lashkar with material support in 2011.

He was also known to Pakistani-American David Headley, who was among the main conspirators of the 26/11 attacks. Rana and Hadley were arrested in 2009 by the FBI while plotting an attack against a Danish newspaper. During his interrogation in the US, Hadley had revealed before Indian officers that he had travelled to India five times between 2007 and 2008 and done recce for the Mumbai attacks – using a five-year visa that Rana had helped him obtain.

Hadley had also revealed the role of Lashkar in the Mumbai attacks and said he had opened an immigration company to hide his identity with Rana’s help. He had testified that Rana gave him all the logistical and financial support he needed.

To prepare for the attack, Rana visited Mumbai with his wife and stayed at the Taj Mahal Hotel, which later became a target of the attacks.

The Extradition

Besides being legal, Rana’s extradition has been a long diplomatic battle for India. In 2019, the government had first approached the US with a request to extradite him. For the next six years, India repeatedly followed this up with the US authorities while Rana looked for legal options.

The breakthrough came last August when a lower court ordered his extradition and was upheld by the Supreme Court earlier this month. It has now turned down a review request, clearing all the legal obstacles to his extradition.

Since 2019, India has maintained Rana was the mastermind behind the 26/11 attacks.

In his defence, Rana had argued that he was tried in a local district court in Chicago for the Mumbai attacks, and he cannot be tried for the same offence in another country as per the extradition treaty between India and US.

The US Solicitor General, however, told the court that all the charges against Rana, on which India seeks his extradition, were not covered by the US government’s prosecution.

What’s Next

Legal obstacles being taken care of, it’s now a matter of time before Rana is extradited to India.

His extradition will not be just a big diplomatic victory but an example of how people cannot run from the law after committing a crime. His interrogation on the Indian land will help Indian officers reveal new details and missing links.

Related to the 26/11 attacks or not, cases can be reopened if the investigators find any clue from Rana. If someone evaded enforcement radar in the past, they could face a fresh probe.

Rana has been a close associate of the Pakistani spy agency ISI and by bringing him to India, Indian agencies will get access to what actually transpired behind this conspiracy, said PK Jain, former police chief of Maharashtra.

“Rana is aware of the operations of the ISI and Pakistani elements in America and India. He’s going to be a storehouse of information. I’m sure Indian agencies will be able to dig out a lot of important information from him,” he told NDTV.

Aniket Nikam, an advocate at the Bombay High Court, said once Rana is brought back, a fresh case will be filed against him and a new chargesheet will be prepared. India and the US had signed an extradition treaty in 1998, under which the process of bringing him back had started, he said.

The extradition process will start with Rana’s deportation from the US. Indian officers will go there and take him into custody, after which he will face the trial, said Mr Nikam.

“The US Supreme Court has rejected Rana’s appeal. After that you have no other option left. He will be brought to India. This victory was achieved through diplomatic channels. He will be brought to India as soon as possible,” said the advocate.

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