Tahawwur Rana, extradited from the US nearly 16 years after his arrest for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, is lodged in a ward meant for very high-risk prisoners in Delhi’s Tihar Jail. His neighbours are six other high-risk prisoners including dreaded gangsters. But each is in a separate cell, so there’s no interaction. Last week, Special NIA Judge Chander Jit Singh of the Patiala House Courts sent Rana to judicial custody until June 6 — he was produced in court a day before his NIA custody was to end. The NIA collected Rana’s voice and handwriting samples before the judge. Rana is inmate number 1784. The block where he is being kept is less crowded than the others within the jail complex. The ward where he is being kept is a separate ward. No prisoner from the other wards is allowed to enter, a source in Tihar Jail said. “Rana speaks only in English. He has made two requests: books and a western toilet,” the source said. Six blankets have been allotted to Rana — three for placing on the cot — and a fan. “At around 7 am, he is served tea, biscuits, bread and dalia (cracked wheat) for breakfast; there’s dal, rice and sabzi for lunch; tea with snacks in the evening; and dal with rice and sabzi for dinner. But he is not eating much,” the source said. “There are CCTV cameras installed in his cell to watch all activity and he remains on suicide watch 24x7. There are separate cooks for this cell. After the food is prepared, the prison staff check by tasting it before it is served,” the source said. A close associate of 26/11 Lashkar-e-Taiba scout David Coleman Headley, Rana was brought to India on April 10 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.
