Lalit K Jha
Washington DC, March 7, 2025
US Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan on Thursday (March 6) denied the emergency application for a stay of Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, against his extradition to India where he is wanted in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack case.
“Application (24A852) denied by Justice Kagan,” the US Supreme Court said on Thursday night, sharing the decision of Justice Elena Kagan, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, on Rana’s February 28th request for an emergency application to stay in the United States and not be extradited.
Habeas Corpus filed
Immediately thereafter, Rana’s Attorney Tillman J Finley filed another renewed emergency application for stay pending litigation of petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus. Finley requested that a renewed application be directed to Chief Justice Roberts.
On Thursday night, Finley resubmitted his previous application requesting that it be directed to Chief Justice Roberts. His Attorney said that the extradition of Rana, a now 64-year-old Pakistani-Canadian former physician of failing health, to India, faces “nearly certain to suffer torture and death.”
“The Secretary of State signed the surrender warrant authorising Rana’s surrender to Indian authorities. Rana’s legal counsel subsequently filed an emergency stay motion seeking to challenge that order. The motion is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. The Department of Justice is handling the litigation and continues to coordinate with the Government of India on the logistics of Rana’s surrender next steps,” a States Department spokesperson said.
Bid to prevent extradition
In his emergency application to stay, Finley said that Rana sought a writ of habeas corpus to prevent his extradition to India.
“But to be able to pursue that claim at all, his extradition must be stayed,” he argued.
However, the State Department on February 13 informed the Court that the decision to surrender Tahawwur Rana to India complies with the US obligations under the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and its implementing statutes and regulations.
Rana is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles.
“Rana now faces the prospect of the transfer to a country where his birthplace (Pakistan), his religion (Muslim), and the nature of the charges (terrorist murder of 166 people) mark him for likely abuse–followed, if he survives pretrial incarceration, by a trial with a predictable result and execution by hanging, per India Code of Criminal Procedure § 354(5),” his Attorneys said.
“Because of his Muslim religion, his Pakistani origin, his status as a former member of the Pakistani Army, the relation of the putative charges to the 2008 Mumbai attacks, and his chronic health conditions he is even more likely to be tortured than otherwise would be the case, and that torture is very likely to kill him in short order,” Finley said.
If extradited, Rana is likely to be tortured and treated in a way that violates the CAT and US law implementing it, he argued.
“Indeed, given petitioner’s underlying health conditions and the State Department’s own findings regarding treatment of prisoners, it is very likely Dr Rana will not survive long enough to be tried in India,” the Attorney claimed.
Lalit K Jha is a White House Correspondent based in Washington DC. The above Report which appeared at www.5wh.com has been published under a special agreement.
