The Washington Court, United States has recently agreed to deport Tahawwur Rana (Canadian businessman of Pakistani origin) to India.
Rana is sought by India for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
The order was issued by US Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Chooljian that certifies Rana’s extradition under the India-US extradition treaty.
However, the extradition decision comes somewhat over a month before Prime Minister Modi’s scheduled state visit to Washington DC, where he will be hosted by President Joe Biden & First Lady Jill Biden for a state dinner on June 22.
Tahawwur Rana has been accused by India of participating in planning & executing Lashkar terrorist attacks in Mumbai by collaborating with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley, aka “Daood Gilani,” and others.
In 2011, Rana was convicted in Chicago of providing material support to the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which planned the Mumbai terror attack.
Therefore, he was accused of allowing David Coleman Headley to open a branch of his Chicago-based immigration law business in Mumbai as a cover story and travel as a representative of the company in Denmark.
The order stated that, “The court has reviewed and considered all of the documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the request, and has considered the arguments presented at the hearing. Based on such review and consideration and for the reasons discussed herein, the court makes the findings set forth below, and certifies to the Secretary of State of the United States the extractability of Rana on the charged offenses that are the subject of the request.”
India initially filed a complaint on June 10, 2020, seeking Rana’s provisional arrest for the purpose of extradition, where a request was supported and approved by the Biden administration.
A spokesperson when asked about the case, the State Department then referred the query to the Department of Justice but expressed the United States’ commitment to fight terrorism globally and its strong counter-terrorism relationship with India.
