Centre appoints Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to lead 26/11 trial against Tahawwur Hussain Rana

Rana was arrested in Chicago in 2009, months after the Mumbai siege, and had been fighting extradition ever since.

In a major development in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case, the Union government on Thursday appointed a legal team headed by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to conduct the trial against accused Tahawwur Hussain Rana.

Rana, a Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman and childhood friend of Lashkar-e-Taiba operative David Coleman Headley, was recently extradited to India from the United States. His return is seen as a key breakthrough in the investigation of the 2008 attacks that killed 166 people in Mumbai.

The US Supreme Court had rejected Rana’s review petition against extradition earlier in April, 2025, clearing the way for his handover to Indian authorities. He was formally produced before a special NIA court in Delhi on April 28, following his earlier remand to 18 days of NIA custody. His custody was extended by another 12 days during the court appearance.

Officials from the Mumbai Police Crime Branch recently interrogated Rana at the NIA office in Delhi. According to All India Radio report, he remained evasive and uncooperative during the eight-hour-long session.

The NIA alleges that Rana was not only complicit in the 26/11 plot but also involved in planning future terror attacks in India. He reportedly met LeT operative Abdur Rehman in Dubai prior to the Mumbai attacks and facilitated reconnaissance efforts by Headley by providing logistical support.

Rana was arrested in Chicago in 2009, months after the Mumbai siege, and had been fighting extradition ever since.

With Tushar Mehta, India’s Solicitor General since 2018 and a seasoned legal veteran, leading the prosecution, the high-profile trial is expected to gain momentum in the coming weeks.