Only officers cleared by NIA chief can meet Tahawwur Rana in his cell

NEW DELHI: The NIA team, led by the agency’s deputy inspector general Jaya Roy who is also the chief investigating officer in the Tahawwur Rana case, aims to extract information about his contacts and activities during his India visits, particularly between Nov 8 and Nov 21, 2008, and is likely to follow through any lead closely with various state Anti-Terrorism Squads (ATS) to take action based on Rana’s testimony.

“Rana will remain in NIA custody for 18 days, during which time the agency will question him in detail in order to unravel the complete conspiracy behind the deadly 2008 attacks, in which 166 peo ple were killed and over 238 injured,” said a statement issued by the probe agency soon after the court’s order.

Rana’s security during his remand as well as future judicial custody is the biggest challenge for the agency. He has been kept on “suicide watch” which requires him to be under 24/7 human and CCTV surveillance.

Only a handful of officers, authorised by NIA chief Sadanand Date, are permitted inside his cell. Date, a Maharashtracadre IPS officer, was posted as additional commissioner of police in Mumbai during the 2008 attack and had received serious injuries fighting the terrorists.

Special guards are keeping a watch on Rana on rotation basis and no conversation between them is permissible, a source said. Special precautions will be taken when he is taken to another city amid indications that the agencies don’t rule out attempts to eliminate him to prevent him from“ratting” on his collaborators in the ISI and Lashkar’s sleeper cells within India.

Cops will assist NIA in probe: Maharashtra CM
NIA and MHA will lead the 26/11 probe, and Mumbai police will assist in the investigation into the role of Rana, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis said Friday. While Ajmal Kasab was hanged, there was “still a burden on our hearts about those who conspired to attack Mumbai,” he said, adding that the Centre has now succeeded in getting the conspirators to face the Indian justice system.
TNN & AGENCIES