‘I was meant to be at Taj hotel’: Himanta Biswa Sarma recalls narrow escape from 26/11 Mumbai attacks as Tahawwur Rana returns to face justice

NEW DELHI: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his personal experience from the night of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, following the arrest of key conspirator Tahawwur Rana in India.

“In a twist of fate, I narrowly escaped being at the Taj Hotel during the 26/11 attacks,” Sarma wrote on social media platform 'X'.
“I was scheduled to stay at the Taj that night but changed plans and moved to another hotel at the last minute. The horror of that night has stayed with me ever since. I vividly remember watching the NSG operation unfold, with one thought echoing in my mind — karma will eventually catch up with the masterminds behind the attack.”

“Sixteen years later, seeing Tahawwur Rana back on Indian soil brings a sense of closure and renewed confidence. With decisive leadership in place, those plotting against India will think twice before striking again,” Sarma added, also resharing an older post from 14 years ago in which he had written: “I was in Mumbai on 26/11. Booked at Taj but changed the hotel for some other reason. Stayed back in Mumbai for the next 3 days. Saw NSG action live.”
Tahawwur Rana extradited
Rana, a Pakistani-Canadian national and close associate of David Coleman Headley, was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) upon his arrival in Delhi on Thursday.
The 2008 Mumbai terror attack, orchestrated by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), had claimed 166 lives and left the nation reeling.
He was produced before Special NIA Judge Chander Jit Singh, who conducted an in-camera hearing on a plea by NIA counsel and special public prosecutor Narender Mann seeking a 20-day remand. Rana, represented by advocate Piyush Sachdeva appointed by the Delhi Legal Services Authority, was remanded to 18 days of NIA custody by the court.
The extradition of Rana was a tightly guarded operation. He was flown in on a special Gulfstream G550 aircraft from Los Angeles, with a stopover in Romania. To avoid public tracking and security threats, Indian authorities used a dummy code for the flight and kept all movements confidential. His arrival at the Palam Technical Area was closely monitored by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the NSA's office, Intelligence Bureau, and NIA.
Rana was produced before Special NIA Judge Chander Jit Singh on Thursday in an in-camera hearing. The NIA, represented by special public prosecutor Narender Mann, sought a 20-day custody. The court granted 18 days. Rana was represented by advocate Piyush Sachdeva, appointed by the Delhi Legal Services Authority.
Wearing prison browns, Rana looked far removed from the seemingly innocuous businessman he posed as during his 2008 trip to India. While he claimed to be promoting his immigration business, NIA suspects he may have also scouted for potential terror recruits in cities like Agra, Hapur, and Kochi.
Onboard the flight to India, Rana was flanked by NSG commandos and senior NIA officers. Upon arrival, he underwent a medical check before being whisked away in a high-security convoy including SWAT teams and a 20-vehicle escort. The NIA also acknowledged the assistance of US Sky Marshals assigned for secure transport of federal detainees.
Legal path to extradition
The NIA called Rana a key conspirator in the 26/11 case. His extradition from the US came after he exhausted all legal options. The District Court for the Central District of California had ordered his extradition on May 16, 2023. Rana challenged the order in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and later filed an emergency application in the US Supreme Court, all of which were dismissed.
The extradition was made possible through the coordinated efforts of the US Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs, the US Attorney’s Office in California, the US Marshals Service, FBI’s Legal Attaché in New Delhi, and the US Department of State’s legal division.
Next steps for NIA
Now in NIA custody, Rana will be interrogated to uncover additional details about the 26/11 plot and the role of LeT masterminds such as Hafiz Saeed and Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi. Investigators aim to extract more intelligence than what Rana shared with US authorities and to further expose the involvement of Pakistan’s military intelligence network in the attacks.