Will be tortured in India: 26/11 accused Rana seeks stay on extradition

Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistani-origin Canadian national accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, has filed an urgent plea before the US Supreme Court, seeking an emergency stay on his extradition to India. Rana claims that he faced a significant risk of torture by Indian authorities, if extradited.

Rana, a close associate of prime accused David Coleman Headley, is currently under supervised detention at a metropolitan detention centre in Los Angeles. He completed a 14-year prison sentence in 2023. In his petition, Rana argued that his extradition would violate both international and US legal protections against torture.

“A stay is necessary and needed on an emergency basis because the government is likely to surrender petitioner to India if a stay is not granted,” the plea stated.

Earlier in January, the US Supreme Court had denied Rana’s petition for a writ of certiorari, which sought to block his extradition to India. The writ had been filed in November 2024, challenging a lower court’s ruling that had approved his extradition. A writ of certiorari is a legal mechanism that allows a higher court to review a lower court’s decision.

On February 14, during a joint press conference with PM Narendra Modi in Washington, US President Donald Trump announced Rana’s extradition to India.

Rana’s legal team has raised concerns about his deteriorating health, stating that the 64-year-old was unlikely to survive long enough to stand trial in India. They also highlighted India’s criminal justice system, citing US State Department reports that document instances of custodial torture and mistreatment of detainees. Rana further claimed that his identity as a Muslim of Pakistani origin and his past service in the Pakistan Army would increase his risk of mistreatment in India.