Tihar Jail to Respond to Rana's Familial Plea Amidst 26/11 Trial

A Delhi court has directed Tihar Jail officials to respond to a plea by Tahawwur Hussain Rana, accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, seeking to contact his family. The order was issued on Wednesday, mandating jail authorities to file a status report by June 4.

Rana, a 64-year-old Pakistani-origin Canadian businessman, has been brought to India after his extradition from the United States was cleared. He is closely associated with David Coleman Headley, the key conspirator of the 26/11 attacks. Rana has been in judicial custody since his arrival in India.

The court also appointed a lawyer from the Delhi Legal Services Authority to represent Rana, as he did not have legal representation. Advocate Piyush Sachdeva will now handle his case. Rana is accused of collaborating with Headley and other terrorists from Lashkar-e-Taiba and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami in executing the 2008 attacks that claimed 166 lives in Mumbai.

(With inputs from agencies.)