NIA team lands in US to secure custody of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana

A six-member team comprising senior officers from India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) and intelligence services has arrived in the US to take custody of Tahawwur Rana, a key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

Rana, a 64-year-old Pakistani-origin businessman currently lodged in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles, is alleged to have played a role in facilitating the 2008 attacks that killed 166 people.

His association with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative David Coleman Headley — a leading conspirator in the Mumbai massacre — has made him a high-priority target for Indian counterterrorism authorities.

Led by Inspector General Ashish Batra, the NIA delegation also includes Deputy Inspector General Jaya Roy and a Deputy Superintendent of Police. Their mission follows the recent refusal by the U.S. Supreme Court to stay Rana’s extradition, effectively greenlighting his transfer to India.

According to sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), a team departed for the US on April 6 after securing confirmation of a “surrender warrant,” a legal prerequisite for the extradition of fugitive criminals between the two nations.

Once in Indian custody, Rana will be interrogated at the NIA headquarters in New Delhi, where security arrangements are already being scaled up in anticipation of his arrival. Officials are coordinating closely with the Tihar Jail administration, which is reportedly preparing a high-security cell equipped with round-the-clock surveillance, CCTV coverage, and in-built sanitation facilities.

“There is no official word yet to the jail authorities, but a security audit of the facility has begun,” a source familiar with the matter was quoted as saying.

The path to extradition has been long and diplomatically sensitive. Indian officials — including representatives from the Ministry of External Affairs, the MHA, and the NIA — have been in regular touch with their US counterparts, including the Department of State, to expedite the legal and procedural formalities.

While the NIA was initially scheduled to travel to the US in late January following the Supreme Court’s decision, US officials requested additional time to complete documentation. That delay now appears resolved, setting the stage for Rana’s return to India to face trial.