How a quid pro quo arrangement with David Headley made Tahawwur Rana a terrorist

Tahawwur Rana (L) and David Headley

In his bid to escape incarceration in a Pakistani jail, Tahawwur Rana ended up behind bars in India. Recently extradited terror accused Tahawwur Rana's story is replete with irony, betrayal, and hatred. A deserter from the Pakistani Army, Rana sought to mend his relationship with the institution through the help of his childhood friend, Dawood Gilani aka David Headley. In a quid pro quo arrangement, he became part of Headley's sinister design to terrorise India.

Records of judicial proceedings in US courts reveal Rana's association with Headley and his role in the Mumbai attack conspiracy. Rana had served as a Captain in the Medical Corps of the Pakistani Army. However, in 1997, he left Pakistan and settled in Canada in search of a better life. While emigrating, Rana did not follow the legal process of dissociating from the army and was declared a deserter. Under the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, a deserter can be jailed for 5-7 years. His status meant he could never return to his home country.

Though settled in Canada, Rana opened a company called First World Immigration Services, based out of Chicago, US. The company offered assistance to people seeking to emigrate to the US and Canada from third-world countries. His immigration business flourished, and offices of his company were set up in several countries.

In the early 2000s, Rana met Headley again in Chicago. Headley, a Pakistani-American, had studied with Rana during their teenage years at Hasan Abdal Cadet College, a boarding school in Punjab, Pakistan. Headley told Rana about his association with the terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba and his access to senior officials of Pakistan’s spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Rana requested Headley to use his contacts in the Pakistani establishment to help withdraw the desertion charge against him. In return, Headley asked Rana to use his immigration company to support Lashkar's operations in India. Rana agreed and arranged a multi-entry Indian visa. He also approved Headley's plan to open an office of his company in Mumbai's Tardeo area. Rana provided Headley with the contact number of a man named Bashir, who assisted Headley during his stay in Mumbai.

From 2006 to 2008, Headley visited India seven times. During these visits, he stayed in regular contact with Rana through phone and email. Although Rana played no role in selecting the targets and was unaware of the full extent of Lashkar's conspiracy, he became culpable by helping Headley pose as a travel agent and scout potential targets in Mumbai and other cities in India.

Headley even arranged a meeting between Rana and a co-conspirator in Dubai, planning an attack on a Danish newspaper using a similar modus operandi—operating under the cover of Rana’s immigration company.

Ironically, it was Headley who revealed Rana’s name after being arrested at Chicago airport. Acting on Headley’s confession, the FBI arrested Rana.

On 12 February 2016, Headley, via video link to a special court in Mumbai, gave a detailed account of his friendship with Rana and how the latter had assisted him in the conspiracy.

Tahawwur Rana, who helped Headley avoid imprisonment in Pakistan, will now languish in an Indian jail until his fate is decided by the court.