In a first step towards getting alleged Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT) operatives David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana extradited to India, the government on Thursday lodged a criminal case against them.
The case, which said there was sufficient evidence linking Headley and Rana to
the LeT — responsible for several terror attacks in India, including the 26/11 attack in Mumbai last year — will be investigated by the National Investigation Agency, Home Minister P. Chidambaram announced.
Headley, 49, was arrested on October 3 by the FBI on the charge of conspiring to carry out terrorist attacks in India and Denmark. A Chicago court has given the FBI 60 days to complete its investigations. India hopes to get hold of Headley thereafter.
A joint team of the Intelligence Bureau and Research and Analysis Wing that went to Washington to coordinate investigations into Headley’s activities returned on Wednesday.
A ministry official said the US administration was expected to agree to India’s request, specially if the US failed to find enough evidence on its own soil.