NIA withdraws plea for warrant against Headley

New Delhi: The National Investigating Agency (NIA) on Thursday withdrew from a Delhi Court its petition seeking issuance of non bailable warrants against terror suspects David Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana on the charge of plotting attacks in India, saying the US was providing access to them.

The NIA filed a fresh application seeking issuance of NBWs against Pakistan-based Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Hafeez Saeed and four others including two Pakistani Army officers for plotting terror attacks in India.

The NIA withdrew its plea against the Headley and Rana saying they are already in judicial custody in the US with which India has an extradition treaty and the agency was being provided access to them.

Regarding Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Hafiz Saeed and other Pakistani accused, NIA sought issuance of NBW on the ground that it was required for getting Red Corner Notices issued against them.

District and Sessions Judge SP Garg asked the NIA to submit the copy of the case diary to ascertain the specific allegations against the accused.

Besides Headley and Rana, who are now in the custody of FBI at Illinois in the USA, the NIA has made Lakhvi, Saeed, Major Iqbal and Major Sameer Ali of Pakistani army, Sajid Mir and Abdul Rehman accused in the FIR lodged on November 11 last year.

The accused have been booked under various provisions of the IPC, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and SAARC Convention (Suppression of Terrorism) Act, dealing with waging war against the Government of India, conspiracy and procuring arms and ammunitions.

All the accused are at present residing outside India.

The NIA, in the FIR, discussed the inputs provided by the FBI saying a detailed probe was required to unravel the entire conspiracy hatched by Headley and others to foment trouble and carry out terror attacks in the country.

A team of the probe agency was recently accompanied by a magistrate to Illinois to record the testimony of Headley who had given his consent to attorney in the USA for deposing before an Indian agency.

Headley and Rana, a Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, had come in contact with terror groups Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT) and HuJI operatives in September 2006 for conspiring to carry out terror attacks in New Delhi and other places in India, NIA said.

Besides his various trips to India, Headley, in the guise of an Immigration Law Consultant, had also come to Delhi from Abu Dhabi on February 7 last year and went back via Mumbai by an Ethihad filght after nearly ten days, NIA said.

The Pakistan-based handlers were in constant touch with Headley and Rana to launch terror attacks in India, it said adding Major Iqbal and Major Sameer Ali, who hailed from Lahore and Karachi respectively, are members of Pakistan Army.