Mumbai Terror Attack: Court Extends Tahawwur Rana's NIA Custody
New Delhi: A Delhi Court has extended the custody of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused Tahawwur Hussain Rana for 12 more days to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday, April 28.
The national agency had moved a plea seeking extended remand of Rana while placing him before the Patiala House Court in Delhi at around 2 pm. His 18-day NIA remand got over, and he was produced by the agency before Special NIA judge Chander Jit Singh. Rana was produced with tight security, with his face covered.
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While Advocate Piyush Sachdeva from Delhi Legal Services Authority represented Rana, senior advocate Dayan Krishnan and special public prosecutor Narender Mann presented arguments on behalf of NIA. Rana, who holds US citizenship and is of Pakistani origin, was a friend and close associate of David Coleman, the main conspirator of the 26/11 attacks.
On April 10, during the hearing, Special NIA Judge Singh noted that there was enough material produced by the probe agency to say that the allegations in the present case pertained to the safety and security of the nation, and allowed the NIA to have Rana’s custody for 18 days. The custody tenure ended on Monday.
The court has suggested that there is evidence that Rana had intentions of conspiring with the attacks in various parts of the country, including the national capital, New Delhi. The Court also directed the NIA to conduct Rana’s medical examination every 48 hours.
A Pakistani-born Canadian citizen and former Pakistan Army doctor, Rana was arrested in the United States in 2009. In 2011, a US court convicted him of providing material support to the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and for involvement in a foiled terror plot in Denmark. However, he was acquitted of direct participation in the Mumbai attacks.
He served 14 years in US prison and was released in 2020 on compassionate grounds during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Though there are no specific cases against Rana for Mumbai terror attack, the NIA has charged him with several allegations. One of the major allegations includes criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for facilitating the Mumbai attacks, waging war against India, a grave offense under Indian law, aiding and abetting murder and terrorism, based on his alleged coordination with Headley and the LeT during multiple trips to India and assisting in target surveillance for the 26/11 attacks, including reconnaissance missions at high-value targets such as the Taj Hotel and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.
