Rana has approached the US Supreme Court to challenge the decision of his extradition to India. In his plea, Rana has urged the American top judicial body to grant him protection from extradition, Times Now reported on Thursday.
Rana has claimed that ‘torture’ awaits him in India while challenging the Trump administration’s decree.
Responding to the allegation, Ujjwal Nikam, Spl public prosecutor in the 26/11 case, said that it is upto the US Supreme Court to decide if there is any merit to Rana’s claims.
“It is for the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether there is any merit to the said allegation…India is one of the largest secular countries, and there is no discrimination on the grounds of race and religion,” Nikam was quoted as saying.
Donald Trump, in a joint press conference with PM Modi, had announced Washington’s decision to handover Rana to New Delhi in February.Who is Tahawwur Rana?
Rana, a former doctor and businessman, is a Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin.
He was arrested in 2009 in Chicago for his ties to a Pakistan-backed terror network. The FBI charged him with supporting Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the terror group behind the Mumbai attacks. While he was convicted in the US for aiding LeT, he was acquitted of charges directly linked to the Mumbai attacks.
However, Indian authorities have maintained that Rana played a significant role by allowing David Coleman Headley, one of the key planners, to use his immigration business as a cover to conduct reconnaissance in Mumbai.
