Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was brought to Delhi after Pakistan released him through the Attari-Wagah border late Friday night, at Delhi’s Army Hospital.
Early Saturday morning, Varthaman met his immediate family members as well as several top officials of the Indian Air Force.
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Wednesday 19 March 2025
Varthaman arrived in the national capital around 11:45 pm on Friday and soon after he was taken to the Air Force Central Medical Establishment, a compact and specialised medical evaluation centre for aircrew of all the three services.
He was captured by Pakistani authorities on February 27 after his MiG 21 Bison went down during a dogfight with Pakistani jets. But before his plane was hit, Varthaman shot down an F-16 of Pakistan air force.
Wing Commander Varthaman is undergoing a series of medical tests as part of the “cooling down” process and it is expected to continue till Sunday. Once, the health check up phase is over, debriefing sessions will be arranged for him, officials said.
