26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana undergoes hernia surgery at AIIMS Delhi

Lodged in the high-security ward of Tihar Jail since his extradition last year, 26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana was admitted to AIIMS on May 4.

Tahawwur Rana, extradited from the US last year for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, underwent a hernia surgery at All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi Tuesday.

Rana, 65, who is lodged in Tihar Jail, was admitted on May 4 and operated upon the same morning. “After surgery, he is now recovering. The entire medical examination was conducted after obtaining permission from a Delhi court regarding his health condition,” a source said.

Before receiving a surgery date, he visited AIIMS Delhi five times in the last month, following which doctors scheduled the procedure. Records reviewed by The Indian Express show visits on March 31, followed by four more on April 6, April 7, April 20, and April 21.

Rana is currently lodged in Jail 2 at Delhi’s Tihar Jail, in a ward for high-risk prisoners. He is escorted to the hospital by the Delhi Police’s Nayayik Abhiraksha Vahini (NAV), with special security arrangements by the Delhi Police’s security division.

“Currently, the South district police has also deployed personnel outside Rana’s ward, in coordination with the NAV and the security division. NAV handles ferrying Tihar inmates to court or hospital,” a source said.

Rana, inmate number 1784, shares the less-crowded block with six other high-risk prisoners, including dreaded gangsters and alleged Indian Mujahideen operative Mohammed Ahmed Zarar Siddibappa, alias Yasin Bhatkal. “But each is in a separate cell, so there’s no interaction. The ward where he is being kept is separate. No prisoner from the other wards is allowed to enter,” said a source in Tihar Jail.

A close associate of 26/11 Lashkar-e-Toiba scout David Coleman Headley, Rana, was brought to India on April 10 last year after his extradition from the US. He is accused of aiding and abetting the reconnaissance carried out by Headley, with whom he went to school in Pakistan, for the 26/11 attacks and of participating in the conspiracy by providing crucial logistical support to the terrorists who attacked Mumbai.

Mahender Singh Manral is an Assistant Editor with the national bureau of The Indian Express. He is known for his impactful and breaking stories. He covers the Ministry of Home Affairs, Investigative Agencies, National Investigative Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement Agencies, Paramilitary Forces, and internal security. Prior to this, Manral had extensively reported on city-based crime stories along with that he also covered the anti-corruption branch of the Delhi government for a decade. He is known for his knack for News and a detailed understanding of stories. He also worked with Mail Today as a senior correspondent for eleven months. He has also worked with The Pioneer for two years where he was exclusively covering crime beat. During his initial days of the career he also worked with The Statesman newspaper in the national capital, where he was entrusted with beats like crime, education, and the Delhi Jal Board. A graduate in Mass Communication, Manral is always in search of stories that impact lives. ... Read More

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Tahawwur Rana, extradited from the US last year for his alleged role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, underwent a hernia surgery at All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi Tuesday.

Rana, 65, who is lodged in Tihar Jail, was admitted on May 4 and operated upon the same morning. “After surgery, he is now recovering. The entire medical examination was conducted after obtaining permission from a Delhi court regarding his health condition,” a source said.

Before receiving a surgery date, he visited AIIMS Delhi five times in the last month, following which doctors scheduled the procedure. Records reviewed by The Indian Express show visits on March 31, followed by four more on April 6, April 7, April 20, and April 21.

Rana is currently lodged in Jail 2 at Delhi’s Tihar Jail, in a ward for high-risk prisoners. He is escorted to the hospital by the Delhi Police’s Nayayik Abhiraksha Vahini (NAV), with special security arrangements by the Delhi Police’s security division.

“Currently, the South district police has also deployed personnel outside Rana’s ward, in coordination with the NAV and the security division. NAV handles ferrying Tihar inmates to court or hospital,” a source said.

Rana, inmate number 1784, shares the less-crowded block with six other high-risk prisoners, including dreaded gangsters and alleged Indian Mujahideen operative Mohammed Ahmed Zarar Siddibappa, alias Yasin Bhatkal. “But each is in a separate cell, so there’s no interaction. The ward where he is being kept is separate. No prisoner from the other wards is allowed to enter,” said a source in Tihar Jail.

A close associate of 26/11 Lashkar-e-Toiba scout David Coleman Headley, Rana, was brought to India on April 10 last year after his extradition from the US. He is accused of aiding and abetting the reconnaissance carried out by Headley, with whom he went to school in Pakistan, for the 26/11 attacks and of participating in the conspiracy by providing crucial logistical support to the terrorists who attacked Mumbai.