Tahawwur Rana was arrested in 2009 on charges of plotting 26/11 terror attack.Washington: There is a "strong possibility" of Pakistani-Canadian Tahawwur Hussain Rana's extradition to India before completion of his 14-year jail term in US in 2021 for plotting 2008 Mumbai terror attack, news agency Press Trust of India said quoting a source.Rana, 58, a resident of Chicago, was arrested in 2009 on charges of plotting 26/11 terror attack.

Some 166 people, including US nationals, were killed in attack carried out by 10 Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists in Mumbai.Nine of attackers were killed by police while lone survivor Ajmal Kasab was captured and hanged after handed down death sentence by an Indian court.In 2013, Rana was sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment.

According to US officials, he is set to be released in December 2021.

The Indian government, with "full co-operation" from Trump administration, is currently working on completing necessary paperwork to ensure extradition before his current jail term ends in December 2021.India would not seek extradition of Rana on charges for which he is already serving his jail sentence, as officials pointed out that "double jeopardy" clause in US justice system prohibits to punish a person twice for same crime.India is seeking extradition of Rana on ground that he was actively involved in planning an attack on New Delhi-based National Defence College and Chabad Houses in several cities.

There is also forgery case registered against him in India.

"There is a strong possibility of extradition of Rana to India on completion of his jail term here.

We (US and India) are working on this," a source told PTI.But "challenge" is to complete necessary paperwork during this period and overcome cumbersome bureaucracy of two countries and independent judiciary, source said.India's Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Law and Justice and US' State Department and Department of Justice, each of them has their own extradition procedure in place.

They are unwilling to cutdown or speed up their own process when it comes to extradition, source added.Following a recent visit to US by India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) team, officials from both sides have agreed to cut down on bureaucratic procedures so that all necessary paperwork is ready before current jail term of Rana ends in December 2021.The NIA is expected to have direct communication with their US counterparts to cut short timeframe and bureaucratic formalities.In case, US government in co-operation with Indian government is unable to complete necessary paperwork before that, officials here said it would become very tough to ensure a smooth extradition of Rana once he is released from jail in Chicago, where he is currently serving his sentence.As per existing US law, Rana, a Pakistan-born Canadian national, would most probably be deported to Canada if India and US are unable to complete cumbersome extradition process before his release.However, people familiar with matter told PTI that there is a "desire" so there is an assurance from highest level in Trump administration that all necessary steps would be taken in timely manner to ensure extradition of Rana before his release.According to US officials, extradition of Rana would help in cementing relationship between two countries, boost up counter-terrorism co-operation and enhance America's image among Indians.On 10th anniversary of Mumbai terror attack, in November 2018, Trump administration had reiterated its resolve to bring to justice those involved in it.

Vice President Mike Pence had raised this issue during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November.During their recent visit, NIA team also received guidance from their US counterparts on paperwork which India needs to complete to meet requirements of American judiciary system and their standards.

Citing partial government shutdown, State Department and Department of Justice expressed their inability to respond to questions related to extradition of Rana.The Indian Embassy in Washington and attorney of Rana did not respond to a question on this issue.