Tahawwur Rana seeks date for a pretrial conference

CHICAGO: Ahead of his February 24 hearing, LeT terror suspect Tahawwur Rana has sought a date from a court here for a pretrial conference to ensure a fair and expeditious trial for him, according to his lawyer.

Federal prosecutors filed an 8-page motion in US District Court asking that during Rana's February 24 status hearing, a date in March be set for the pretrial conference.

Responding to the motion, Rana through his lawyer Patrick Blegen said that a hearing "prior to the February 24 status appearance is more appropriate."

"Defendant has been in custody under extremely onerous conditions for nearly four months. No discovery has been tendered since well before the return of the superseding indictment. And, the issues to be addressed in a pretrial conference relate primarily to scheduling," Blegen said in his four-page response filed in a Chicago court.

Objecting to the timing requested by the government, he said the conference should be held "promptly" and "a month's time should not be necessary for the government to determine what will be provided to the defense and when it will be provided".

A pretrial conference, called at the discretion of the court, is held among the opposing attorneys and the judge to narrow the issues to be tried.

Pakistani-Canadian Rana had pleaded not guilty last month to charges in the 12-count superseding indictment that allege that he provided material support to terrorist plots in Denmark and India, including the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

-PTI