26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana files plea before US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to stop extradition to India
Washington, DC: Tahawwur Rana, the 26/11 suspect, has petitioned Chief Justice John Roberts of the US Supreme Court to prevent his extradition to India. This comes after his review petition was denied earlier this month by Justice Elena Kagan of the US Supreme Court.
According to information posted on the US Supreme Court website, the application has been sent to the justices of the Supreme Court for a meeting set for April 4, 2025. In an attempt to prevent his extradition to India, Rana has resubmitted his application.
“Petitioner Tahawwar Rana has renewed his Emergency Application for Stay Pending Litigation of Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus previously addressed to Justice Kagan and requests that the renewed application be directed to Chief Justice Roberts, according to the order published on the US Supreme Court’s website,” the appeal stated.
Justice Elena Kagan rejected Rana’s motion earlier this month, asking for a halt to his extradition to India. Rana claimed in his application that he would not live long enough to face trial in India for a number of reasons.
Rana, in an appeal, said, “If a stay is not entered, there will be no review at all, and the US courts will lose jurisdiction, and the petitioner will soon be dead.” Because he is a Muslim of Pakistani descent, the accused in the 26/11 terror attacks said that there is a very high chance that he would be tortured if extradited to India.
He claimed that he is even more likely to be tortured than he would otherwise be due to his Muslim faith, Pakistani ancestry, his status as a former member of the Pakistani Army, the connection between the alleged charges and the 2008 Mumbai attacks, and his ongoing medical issues. He also claimed that torture is likely to result in his death very quickly.
Rana emphasized his declining health in addition to these worries. He has a tumor that may be bladder cancer, Parkinson’s disease with cognitive deterioration, and a 3.5 cm abdominal aortic aneurysm that is immediately in danger of rupturing. He claims he cannot be placed in a “hornet’s nest” because he would be singled out because of cultural, religious, and national hostility.
US President Donald Trump said earlier in February that Tahawwur Rana will be extradited to India and that he would be held accountable. After their bilateral meeting, he made the news at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Tahawwur Rana is a well-known acquaintance of David Coleman Headley, a Pakistani-American terrorist who was a key conspirator in the 2008 Mumbai bombings on November 26.
Rana, a physician, immigration entrepreneur, and businessman of Pakistani descent, is suspected of having ties to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
For years, the United States and India have been at odds over Rana’s suspected involvement in enabling the assaults.
