First photo of Chhota Rajan emerges from Tihar Jail 9 years after arrest

PHOTOS of underworld don Chhota Rajan have emerged for the first time in nine years, dispelling rumours about his death during the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to a report by Times of India, the Tihar inmate was photographed in a seemingly healthy condition. 

Chhota Rajan, once a top lieutenant in Mumbai's D-Company, had a fallout with kingpin Dawood Ibrahim after the 1993 Mumbai bombings. Rajan has also been on the receiving end of many death threats by don Chhota Shakeel.

While Rajan has been in Tihar since 2015, the prison administration never issued any official statement or update regarding the crime boss to date.

Chhota Rajan tested positive for Covid-19 in April 2021 and was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi. After the news of Bihar's mafia don-turned-politician Shahabuddin's death from Covid surfaced, speculation was rife that Rajan had also passed due to the virus.

In 2000, don Chhota Shakeel's shooters attacked Rajan in Bangkok. The crime boss was shot multiple times, once again sparking the rumours of his death. However, he ended up surviving the attack.

Dawood and Chhota Rajan parted ways after the 1993 Mumbai blasts due to internal disagreements on the bloodshed that followed the terror attacks.

A red corner notice was issued against Rajan in 1994, but it was speculated that since his split with Dawood, he was helping federal agencies with inside information on the D-Company's workings.

After remaining at large for nearly two decades, Chhota Rajan was caught in 2015 when he arrived at the Bali airport from Sydney. He was reportedly carrying a passport with the name Mohan Kumar, but ended up saying his real name - Rajendra Sadashiv Nikhalke - to the authorities at immigration.