4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Apr 28, 2026 07:26 AM IST
Tahawwur Rana, who was extradited from the US last April — nearly 16 years after his arrest for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, is learnt to have visited the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here five times in the last one month for “medical treatment”. After multiple check-ups and tests, he is scheduled to undergo a “medical procedure” on May 4, The Indian Express has learnt.
The first visit occurred on March 31, followed by four more visits on April 6, April 7, April 20 and April 21, according to records reviewed by The Indian Express.
Queries sent to Director General (Prisons) Anand Mohan, NIA spokesperson, Tihar Jail spokesperson and AIIMS spokesperson did not elicit any response.
Rana, 65, is currently lodged in Jail 2, in a ward meant for high-risk prisoners in Delhi’s Tihar Jail. He is escorted to hospital by the Delhi Police’s Nayayik Abhiraksha Vahini (NAV), said sources.
“When he comes to the outpatient department (OPD) for his health check-ups, the South district police make adequate security arrangements, in coordination with the NAV. The NAV is responsible for ferrying Tihar inmates to court/ hospital,” said a source.
“Each time, Rana was transported under heavy police escort to the cardiology, general medicine, nephrology departments and the surgery ward. He was discharged the same day, after some hours of conducting tests. Now, after conducting multiple check-ups and tests, he has got a date for a medical procedure on May 4. The entire medical examination was conducted after taking permission from a Delhi Court regarding his health condition,” said the source.
Sources indicated that the ailments stem from age-related cardiac problems and hypertension. “Routine medical protocol was followed, but his history warrants close monitoring,” said a senior official who did not want to be named.
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Prison officials cited “recurring health issues”, but provided no further details on his condition. “There are CCTV cameras installed in his cell to watch all activity and he remains on suicide watch 24×7. There are separate cooks for this cell. After food is prepared, the prison staff taste it before it is served,” said the source.
Rana is inmate number 1784. The block where he is being kept is less crowded than the others within the jail complex. “His neighbours are six other high-risk prisoners including dreaded gangsters and alleged Indian Mujahideen (IM) 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 a separate ward. No prisoner from the other wards is allowed to enter,” said a source in Tihar Jail.
A close associate of 26/11 Lashkar-e-Taiba 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.
Before his extradition, the Indian government had submitted multiple assurance letters to the US officials. “In one such assurance letter, the Indian government was asked for details about security arrangements and facilities in the jail where Rana would be kept. The Indian authorities had responded to four queries from US officials — about apprehension of torture in police custody, legal aid, security arrangements and facilities in Tihar Jail,” said the source.
