A Delhi court on Monday extended the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) custody of 26/11 Mumbai attacks accused Tahawwur Hussain Rana by another 12 days. Special NIA Judge Chander Jit Singh granted the extension following a request from the agency after Rana’s initial 18-day remand expired. Rana, whose face was covered, was presented in court amid heightened security.
NIA says further custody of Rana needed
The NIA argued that further custody was necessary to confront Rana with substantial evidence, including extensive documents, and to continue his interrogation. The agency also updated the judge during an in-chamber hearing on the progress made during Rana’s earlier remand period.
Senior advocate Dayan Krishnan and special public prosecutor Narender Mann, appearing for the NIA, alleged that Rana was not cooperating with the investigation. Rana was represented by advocate Piyush Sachdeva from the Delhi Legal Services Authority.
Rana had planned to target Delhi with a 26/11 style terror attack
The NIA previously informed the court that Rana had allegedly planned multiple terror plots similar to the 26/11 attacks, targeting several Indian cities, including Delhi.
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Under the terms of his earlier remand, the court had directed the NIA to conduct Rana’s medical check-up every 24 hours and permit him to meet his lawyer every alternate day. Meetings were to be conducted under supervision, with NIA officials positioned out of earshot. Additionally, Rana was allowed to use only a “soft-tip pen.”
During previous proceedings, the NIA had argued that Rana’s custody was critical to fully uncover the extent of the conspiracy and that he needed to be taken to different locations to retrace the events from 17 years ago.
Rana was one of the key planners behind 26/11
Rana, a close associate of David Coleman Headley — also known as Dawood Gilani, the key planner of the 26/11 attacks and a U.S. citizen — was extradited to India after the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed his appeal against extradition on April 4.
The 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, carried out by 10 Pakistani terrorists who infiltrated India via the Arabian Sea, targeted a railway station, two luxury hotels, and a Jewish center, resulting in the deaths of 166 people over a nearly 60-hour siege.
