Rana had similar plans for other Indian cities, NIA tells court
A Delhi court has imposed stringent conditions on the custody of 26/11 Mumbai terror accused Tahawwur Rana as the NIA pressed forward with its claim that Rana may have conspired to orchestrate terror attacks in cities “beyond” Mumbai.
Special Judge Chander Jit Singh of the Patiala House Courts has directed the NIA to conduct a full medical examination of Rana every 48 hours, ensuring that his health remains under continuous surveillance during his 18-day custodial remand.
The court further ordered that he be provided with the prescribed medication without delay and be allowed pen and paper, but only a soft-tip pen, in a move aimed at preventing potential misuse.
In a tightly worded directive, the judge permitted Rana to meet counsel from the Delhi Legal Services Authority every alternate day. However, the court laid down a sharp embargo: The appointed counsel is strictly barred from engaging with the media in any form.
All meetings are to occur in the presence of NIA officers, within audible distance, reflecting the court’s determination to allow legal access without compromising investigative sanctity.
During the hearing on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday, the courtroom witnessed intense exchanges as the NIA laid bare its suspicions that Rana, besides the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, was involved in hatching “newer terror plots within India”.
Senior advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for the agency, told the court that Rana’s interrogation was critical to retracing movements and establishing linkages in what, the agency believes, may be a sprawling conspiracy, buried under years of operational silence.
Citing digital evidence, including classified emails and encrypted exchanges, the NIA argued that Rana had “collaborated with known and unknown individuals” in a blueprint designed to replicate the 2008 assault on Indian soil. “His custodial interrogation is not just a formality, it is imperative,” Krishnan told the court.
The agency had initially sought 20 days of custody, but the court sanctioned 18 days after weighing Rana’s legal and medical entitlements alongside the agency’s claims.
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