WASHINGTON, Aug 18:
A US court has denied the writ of habeas corpus filed by Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana, paving the way for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to issue a certification for him to be extradited to India where he is sought for his involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
In a major victory for India’s fight in bringing the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice, a US court approved 62-year-old Rana’s extradition to India in May.
In June this year, Rana, who is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles, filed a “writ of habeas corpus” challenging the court order that acceded to the request of the US government that the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks accused be extradited to India.
“The court has denied Tahawwur Rana’s petition for writ of habeas corpus by a separate order,” Judge Dale S Fischer, United States District Judge, Central District of California, wrote in his order on August 10.
However, Rana has filed an appeal against the order and sought a stay on his extradition to India till the time his appeal in the Ninth Circuit Court is heard.
Rana faces charges for his role in the Mumbai attacks and is known to be associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
Judge Fischer in his order said Rana has only made two basic arguments in the writ.
First, he claims that, pursuant to the treaty, he cannot be extradited because India plans to prosecute him for the same acts for which he was charged and acquitted in a United States court. Second, he argues that the government has not established that there is probable cause to believe that Rana committed the Indian offences for which he is expected to stand trial, the judge said.
He denied both arguments of Rana.
“Given that, even if (David) Headley’s testimony were the entire basis for the probable cause finding, it would be sufficient for the purposes of habeas review because it constitutes some competent evidence supporting the finding. For the reasons stated above, Rana’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus is denied,” the judge wrote.
Following Judge Fischer’s order, Patrick Blegen and John D Cline, Rana’s two attorneys filed an appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from the Order entered on August 10, 2023, for denying his petition for writ of habeas corpus.
In a separate appeal, Blegen has filed a petition “for a stay of extradition pending his appeal” to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from the court’s order denying his petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
“As set forth in the accompanying memorandum, petitioner submits that a stay of extradition pending appeal is appropriate because he has made a strong showing that he is likely to succeed on the merits of his non-bis in idem claim; he will suffer irreparable harm if he is extradited, potentially including the death penalty; a stay pending appeal will not substantially injure the government; and the public interest favours a full review of Rana’s non-bis claim before he is sent to a country that seeks to execute him,” Rana’s attorney wrote on August 14.
In June, the Biden administration urged the court to deny the writ of habeas corpus filed by Rana.
“The United States respectfully requests that the court deny Rana’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus,” said E Martin Estrada, US attorney for the Central District of California, in his petition filed before the US District Court for the Central District of California.
India filed a complaint on June 10, 2020, seeking the provisional arrest of Rana with a view towards extradition. The Biden administration supported and approved his extradition to India.
Filing the writ of habeas corpus through his attorney, Rana challenged his extradition by the government of India.
Rana’s extradition would violate the United States-India extradition treaty in two respects, his attorney argued. (PTI)
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