NEW DELHI: US Supreme Court on Saturday approved the extradition of 2008 Mumbai-attack accused Tahawwur Rana to India.
Rana’s lawyer had, earlier this month, argued that the Supreme Court should block his extradition based on the interpretation of “offense” in the US-India extradition treaty.
“The (Supreme) Court should grant the writ. On the merits, it should hold that the term “offence” in the double jeopardy provision of the United States-India extradition treaty (and many other similar treaties) refers to the conduct underlying the charges in the two countries, rather than the elements of the crimes the respective countries have charged,” the lawyer had said.
US government had supported India’s request for his extradition last year asking the Supreme Court to dismiss “the petition for a writ of certiorari” submitted by Rana.
A Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, Rana, had appealed to the US Supreme Court to block his extradition. On December 16, US Solicitor General Elizabeth B Prelogar filed a response urging the court to reject his petition.
Rana had unsuccessfully appealed his extradition in lower courts, including the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco. In August, the Ninth Circuit ruled that the India-US Extradition Treaty allows Rana’s extradition.