NIA grilling of Tahawwur Rana focuses on mystery figure in Dubai: Reports

More than 16 years later, the involvement of a Dubai-based mystery figure in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack has emerged as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) grills key accused Tahawwur Rana, who has just been extradited from the US and is currently in the custody of India’s elite anti-terror agency.

The person allegedly met Rana (64) in Dubai before the 2008 attack and knew about the plan, NIA sources have reportedly claimed. Rana was visiting Dubai along with his wife that autumn, and the man reportedly advised him against going to India because of the planned attack, which Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, already convicted of plotting the 2008 terror attacks, had also reportedly done.

Who is the mysterious man in Dubai?

According to NIA officials quoted by media reports, Rana, a Canadian businessman of Pakistani origin, is being asked about this Dubai-based person, while also being questioned about his links with Headley, alias Daood Gilani. Apparently, it was Headley who had arranged for Rana to meet this co-conspirator in Dubai.

Also read: NIA begins grilling Tahawwur Rana

The NIA is reportedly investigating whether this mysterious man was associated with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, the Pakistani Army, or any Pakistan-based terror group. Interestingly, even other elite counter-terror networks have kept this person’s identity under wraps.

Were other Indian cities targets too?

However, Rana did visit multiple Indian cities, including Mumbai, with his wife, Samraz Rana Akhtar, between November 13 and 21, 2008. The other cities included Delhi, Ahmedabad, Kochi, and Hapur and Agra in Uttar Pradesh. The NIA is probing whether he was carrying out recces of these places to plan similar attacks.

Rana and Headley allegedly used an immigration consultancy firm in Mumbai as a cover to carry out recces of potential targets, including key hotels and public sites in the city. In November 2008, the lease of that office was up for renewal though it was never done. Rana is reportedly being questioned on that too.

Also read: Tahawwur Rana's extradition big success of Modi govt: Amit Shah

A protected witness

Another angle the NIA is focusing on is reportedly a “protected witness” who was linked to both Rana and Headley. The man allegedly arranged for Headley’s accommodation and logistics in Mumbai in 2006 on Rana’s behest. That year, Headley went to Pakistan and met Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists and Pakistani state actors, who reportedly instructed him to take general videos of Mumbai and the Taj Mahal hotel.

This witness — whose identity was concealed even in court documents to protect him from the 2008 attack conspirators, including LeT and ISI — is reportedly key to implicating Rana for his alleged role in the attack that left 166 people dead. The two might reportedly be brought face to face soon.

Rana’s security

Rana, who is in NIA custody for 18 days, has been lodged in a high-security cell at the agency’s headquarters in Delhi. The outer perimeter is under CRPF and Delhi Police guard while 24/7 surveillance has been arranged inside too.

Also read: Extradition from US: The 'conduct' vs 'elements' factor that worked against Rana

Rana is being subjected to a medical examination every 24 hours. He is allowed to meet his legal counsel every other day but only under close supervision. They are allowed only a soft-tip pen to rule out an attack using it as a weapon.

Sadanand Vasant Date, serving as the Director General of NIA now, made headlines in 2008 after being severely injured during the 26/11 attack. As a senior officer with Mumbai Police, Date had confronted terrorists Ajmal Kasab and Abu Ismail at the Cama Hospital.