US Supreme Court justices will hear next month Mumbai terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana’s renewed application, submitted to Chief Justice John Roberts, seeking a stay of his extradition to India.
Rana, 64, is currently lodged in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles and submitted an “Emergency Application For Stay Pending Litigation of Petition For Writ of Habeas Corpus on February 27, 2025 with Elena Kagan, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and Circuit Justice for the Ninth Circuit.
Earlier this month, Kagan had denied the application. Rana had then renewed his “Emergency Application for Stay Pending Litigation of Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus previously addressed to Justice Kagan, and requested that the renewed application be directed to Chief Justice Roberts.
An order on the Supreme Court website noted that Rana’s renewed application has been distributed for Conference of 4/4/2025 and application has been referred to the Court. New York-based eminent Indian-American attorney Ravi Batra told PTI that Rana had made his application to the Supreme Court to prevent extradition, which Justice Kagan denied on March 6.
The application is now before Roberts, who has shared it with the Court to conference so as to harness the entire Court’s view. Batra added that the issue before the Supreme Court is that since the President is constitutionally empowered to engage in foreign policy in the comity of nations and it’s our national policy to be against terror — be it state-sponsored or Lone Wolf – is there any law or constitutional principle that the Court can justly rely upon to disagree with, and block, President (Donald) Trump’s extradition decision. Batra added that he fully expects that in calmer times CJ Roberts would deny Rana the right to stay in America and avoid facing justice in India.”
“During current times, with so many district judges blocking President Trump’s domestic agenda changes…the Supreme Court will enjoy denying Rana more easily. After President Trump and PM (Narendra) Modi met in the Oval, President Trump announced in the press conference that Rana will be extradited to India, to face his victims and his justice. The current posture is akin to a fish out of water, but moving around a lot to try to get back into American waters,” Batra said.
