‘Will soon be dead if extradited to India’: 26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana's desperate plea to US Supreme Court

Tahawwur Rana, the 26/11 Mumbai terror accused, in his final attempts to evade Indian authorities, approached the United States Supreme Court on two occasions, seeking an emergency stay on his extradition. Tahawwur Rana, through an appeal, stated that “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.”

Tahawwur Rana Claims Custodian Death Under BJP-Govt

Tahawwur Rana, accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, claimed that if extradited to India, the likelihood is very high that he will be subjected to torture as he is a Muslim of Pakistani origin, ANI reported.

Tahawwur Rana stated that because of his Muslim religion, his Pakistani origin, his status as a former member of the Pakistani Army, and the relation of the putative charges to the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, he is even more likely to be tortured than otherwise would be the case, and that torture is very likely to kill him in short order.

Tahawwur Rana cited the Human Rights Watch 2023 World Report, which documents the BJP-led government's systematic discrimination and stigmatization of religious minorities, particularly Muslims.

Rana further argued that the Government in India is increasingly autocratic, and there are substantial grounds for believing that he would be in danger of torture if he surrendered to Indian authorities, the ANI report added.

Tahawwur Rana Cites Health Issues

According to the ANI report, Tahawwur Rana highlighted his deteriorating health in seeking a stay on India's extradition request.

Tahawwur Rana suffers from a 3.5 cm abdominal aortic aneurysm at immediate risk of rupture, Parkinson's disease with cognitive decline, and a mass suggestive of bladder cancer, the report adds.

Tahawwur Rana asserts that he cannot be sent into a “hornet's nest” where he will be targeted due to national, religious, and cultural animosity.

Tahawwur Rana Cites Arms Dealer Sanjay Bhandari's case

According to a report by The Print, Tahawwur Rana filed another plea on March 2, citing the February 28 ruling by the King’s Bench Division of the High Court in London, blocking arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari’s extradition to India.

The UK court cited a “real risk of torture or inhuman or degrading treatment”.

“If Bhandari could not be extradited to India due to the likelihood of torture, the petitioner faces an even greater risk and should not be extradited either,” his application, a copy of which is with ThePrint, said.

Rana’s application argued that his extradition to India would violate the US law, which implements the terms of the United Nations Convention Against Torture.

“The Bhandari decision demonstrates that the petitioner’s fears of being subjected to torture, likely resulting in death, are well-founded, as evidenced by the UK court’s refusal to extradite to India,” The Print quoted the application submitted by Rana.

Who is Tahawwur Rana?

Tahawwur Rana is reportedly an associate of terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the November 26 attacks in Mumbai in 2008.

A Pakistani-origin businessman, physician, and immigration entrepreneur, Tahawwur Rana has alleged connections with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

India has sought the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, for his involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, which claimed the lives of at least 174 people and left more than 300 others injured.

Tahawwur Rana is lodged in a jail in Los Angeles. On January 25, 2025, the US Supreme Court cleared the deck for his extradition to India by junking his review petition against such a move.