Rana to go ahead with `not guilty plea` unlike Headley

Yoshita Singh
Chicago, Mar 30 (PTI) Pakistani-Canadian terror suspect
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, charged for his involvement in the
Mumbai attacks, will not change his 'not guilty plea' and will
go ahead for a trial, the process for which will start only
after September, his lawyer said on Tuesday.
Rana, wearing the orange prison jumspsuit, appeared
before US Judge Harry Leinenweber in US District court here
where federal prosecutors set out dates till September to
produce and handle classified information and evidence in the
case.
Speaking to reporters after the 20 minute hearing, Rana's
attorney Patrick Blegen said his client is not changing his
plea like co-accused David Coleman Headley did.
"We are heading for a trial... we are hoping for a trial
sooner rather than later," Blegen said.
LeT operative Headley pleaded guilty on March 18 to all
12 counts against him, including scouting for targets for the
26/11 Mumbai attacks.
Blegen said Headley's guilty plea did not come as a
surprise since he had been "cooperating with the
investigation".
"We knew and I think everybody in the press already knew
as well that he was planning on pleading guilty.
"He allowed the Department of Justice to indicate that he
was cooperating so it is not surprising at all.
"As to how it will affect the (Rana) case, I have to see
the evidence first," he said adding that he feels he still has
a strong case.
Rana's trial process is expected to start only after
September, till when federal prosecutors would work on what
evidence, gathered against him, can be used at trial.
Blegen said the trial would "obviously not start till
after September" but hoped that it would not take 1-2 years
for the trial to begin.
On whether Indian authorities, who have been pressing to
interrogate Headley, would be given access to Rana, Blegen
said, "I will wait to hear who exactly wanted to talk to whom
and what the conditions are. If they ask, I'll think about
it".
Chicago's top federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, who
was present at the hearing, told the court he hopes to
declassify evidence gathered in the terror investigation in
the next few months.
Fitzgerald said declassifying the material would help the
government avoid extensive use of the Classified Information
Procedures Act (CIPA) - which is essentially a procedural tool
for a court to address the relevance of classified evidence
before it may be introduced for trial.
"A substantial amount of discovery is classified material
we're seeking to declassify," said Fitzgerald, whose presence
during the hearings demonstrates the high importance the
government is attaching to the case. (MORE) PTI