LI NETWORK
The US government has presented in a California court that Tahawwur Hussain Rana, the main accused on November 26, 2008, Mumbai attack, be freed for extradition to India as his legal status fulfils all the criteria for handover.
In 2019, India, through the External Affairs Ministry, had applied for Rana’s extradition. The US authorities, this year, had put Rana under confinement based on a provisional plea for arrest from the NIA (National Investigation Agency).
The US applied for extradition in the designated court.
The submissions from the US government, represented by the chief of the National Security Division of the US Attorney’s Office in the Court for Central District of California read:
“In the instant case, the elements necessary for the Court to certify Rana’s eligibility for extradition have been met. There is subject matter and personal jurisdiction over Rana. A valid extradition treaty permits extradition for some of the offenses charged in India. And there is probable cause to believe that Rana committed these offenses.”
The US government also said that Rana’s earlier arguments against extradition had “no merit.”
Furthermore, the US government said that “the dual-criminality requirement (of the extradition treaty) is met because the remaining charged offenses are punishable in both India and the United States.”
The hearing is scheduled for January 2021.