Under the supervision of a high-level committee headed by Coimbatore District Collector M Karunakaran, a team of doctors examined Abu Dahir, a prisoner serving life term, jailed in the Coimbatore Central Prison.
A member of the banned Al-Umma outfit, Abu Dahir was convicted for murdering an assistant jailer in Madurai in 1997. He was sentenced for life, along with three others, by a Madurai court in 2003 and has been serving it since then.
The test was conducted after he had requested leave on medical grounds. It is learnt that Abu Dahir has been suffering from Systemic Lupus Erythmatosus (SLE), an autoimmune disease, which has affected his heart and both kidneys.
For the last several years, Abu Dahir was being treated in the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital and had been granted leave on medical grounds a few times earlier. However, he has this time requested a prolonged leave for treatment.
Sources said that the medical tests have found the health condition of Abu Dahir stable. But, he requires regular treatment.
Currently, Abu Dahir has been lodged in the 10th block of the prison where the 1998 serial bomb blast accused were also lodged. However, senior officials who supervised the medical tests refused to comment.