Tahawwur Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian businessman, arrived in India on Thursday after being extradited from the United States.
Rana, 64, is accused of helping orchestrate the deadly 2008 attacks in Mumbai that killed over 160 people, making his extradition a significant milestone in international counterterrorism efforts.
Rana’s extradition was hailed as a major success by Indian officials, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government praising it as a victory for Indian diplomacy.
Home Minister Amit Shah described the transfer as “great success” in bringing justice to the victims of the tragic attacks. Rana had been fighting extradition for years, but the U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected his appeals, paving the way for his return to India.
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Rana, a former doctor who later became a businessman, was sentenced in the U.S. in 2013 to 14 years in prison for providing support to Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pakistani militant group blamed by India for the Mumbai attacks.
The group sent ten armed attackers to target key locations in Mumbai, including luxury hotels, a Jewish center, and the main train station.
India first requested Rana’s extradition in 2020, and U.S. President Donald Trump announced the transfer earlier this year. Rana is also linked to a 2011 conspiracy to attack a Danish newspaper, which was thwarted before it could be carried out.
While Rana’s lawyer insists that he was “a good man” caught in a terrible situation, Indian officials are determined to hold him accountable for his role in the horrific events of November 2008.
For many in India, this extradition brings a long-awaited sense of justice for the lives lost in the devastating Mumbai attacks.
