Tahawwur Rana submits renewed application seeking stay on extradition to India

The US Supreme Court rejected Mumbai terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana’s emergency application seeking a stay of his extradition to India. Following the denial of his petition, Rana immediately submitted a renewed application for stay and requested that his application be directed to Chief Justice Roberts.

As per the US Supreme Court website, his application for stay on extradition has been denied. "Application…denied by Justice Elena Kagan,” a note read.

Rana (64), a close associate of prime accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks David Coleman Headley, is serving supervised detention at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles after completing a 14-year sentence in 2023.

A Canadian national of Pakistani origin, he had submitted an ‘emergency application for stay pending litigation of petition for writ of habeas corpus’ on February 27, seeking an emergency stay on his extradition to India claiming that he faces a risk of torture by the Indian authorities. In his petition, Rana argued that his extradition would violate international and US legal protections against torture.

"A stay is necessary, and needed on an emergency basis, because the government is likely to surrender the petitioner to India if a stay is not granted, which would moot petitioner’s habeas petition and prevent any further proceedings thereon,” the plea stated.

Earlier in January, the US Supreme Court denied a petition of writ of certiorari filed by Rana seeking to prevent his extradition to India. The writ had been filed in November 2024 against an earlier order of a lower court that had ruled in favour of his extradition to India.

On February 14, US President Donald Trump had announced Rana’s extradition to India during a joint press conference in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington.

Rana's legal team emphasised that his health is deteriorating and he is unlikely to survive long enough to stand trial in India. They also claimed that India’s criminal justice system has a documented history of human rights violations, referencing US State Department reports detailing instances of custodial torture, and mistreatment of detainees

Rana, in his plea, had also claimed that his identity as a 'Muslim of Pakistani origin', along with his past service in the Pakistan Army, would put him at a greater risk of mistreatment in India.