INX case: Delhi HC directs AIIMS director to constitute medical board on condition of Chidambaram
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the AIIMS director to constitute a medical board today itself to give an opinion on the health of former finance minister P Chidambaram, who is suffering from Crohn's disease.
The high court said Hyderabad-based gastroenterologist Nageshwara Redy be included in the board to give his opinion on the medical condition of Chidambaram, who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail.
Chidambaram has sought interim bail in the INX media money laundering case on medical grounds, saying his condition is deteriorating and he needs to be in a sterile environment. Justice Suresh Kait said the board will sit today to discuss Chidambaram's medical condition and the report be placed before the court which will hear the matter on Friday.
The 74-year-old senior Congress leader had moved the High Court on Wednesday seeking interim bail in the INX Media money-laundering case. Chidambaram has sought interim relief for six days to enable him to consult and get examined by his doctor at the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology (AIG), Hyderabad.
He has claimed that he needs "urgent medical treatment for the acute and persistent abdominal pain being experienced" by him since October 5 due to Crohn's disease which he was diagnosed with in 2017.
Crohn's disease is inflammation of the digestive tract leading to abdominal pain, diarrhoea and also weight loss.
According to his bail application, he was examined at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on October 7 and was prescribed an antibiotic and painkillers after which the abdominal pain subsided.
Thereafter, the problem recurred on October 22 and he was examined on October 23 at AIIMS and prescribed a new set of medicines. However, there was no relief from the pain, the application has contended.
Subsequently, he was examined again at AIIMS on October 24 and October 26 and tests were conducted at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital on October 28, it has said.
After the medical test, Chidambaram has been put on steroid treatment for next 16 weeks, the application has said and added that as his body was not responding to treatment prescribed at AIIMS he be allowed to consult his doctor at AIG.
It has also said that his medical reports were sent to his regular doctor by e-mail and after perusing the same, the doctor has said the inflammation has increased and Chidambaram needs immediate treatment in a sterile environment.
The application has further said that he has lost nearly seven kilos due to the ailment. The plea for interim relief has been moved by Chidambaram in his application seeking regular bail in the INX Media money-laundering case in which he is presently in ED custody.
His plea for regular bail is listed for hearing on November 4.
Chidambaram, who was sent to Tihar Jail on Wednesday till November 13 by the trial court in the INX media money laundering case, was arrested by the CBI on August 21 in the INX Media corruption case.
The case was registered on May 15, 2017, alleging irregularities in a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to the INX Media group for receiving overseas funds of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as Union finance minister.
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Two held for 'firing' at BJP leader's house in Bengal
Kolkata (PTI): A day before the counting of votes for the West Bengal assembly elections, two persons were arrested on Sunday for allegedly being involved in a firing incident outside the residence of a BJP leader in North 24 Parganas district, police said.
BJP leader Kundan Singh lodged a police complaint, alleging that a few gunmen fired at his house in the Noapara constituency around Saturday midnight.
Based on the CCTV footage, the two accused were apprehended, a senior officer said.
BJP's Noapara candidate Arjun Singh, in a post on social media, claimed that around 12.05 am, two armed miscreants arrived on a motorcycle at the residence of Kundan Singh, a BJP functionary and secretary of the Barrackpore organisational district, with an "intent to kill him".
According to the BJP leader, the accused are residents of Garulia and are known criminals.
Their names as offenders had been submitted to the Election Commission, he said.
The police officer did not specify whether the two arrested persons were the same individuals named by Arjun Singh.
According to the complaint, one round of firing took place outside Kundan Singh's house, triggering panic in the area.
The BJP candidate also questioned the role of the police, claiming that one of the accused had been detained by the police on the polling day but was later released in the evening.
The Noapara assembly seat went to the polls on April 29.
Several BJP leaders alleged that attempts were being made to create an atmosphere of fear ahead of the counting and weaken the organisation of the opposition parties.
The counting of votes will take place on May 4. Polling for the West Bengal assembly elections was held on April 23 and April 29.
The BJP urged the Election Commission to intervene immediately to ensure peaceful counting.
TMC candidate Somnath Shyam rubbished Arjun Singh’s allegation, claiming that the BJP nominee had orchestrated the firing incident to divert attention from imminent defeat.
“Arjun Singh knows all the gangsters in the Barrackpore belt. Everyone knows about his links with the underworld. Let the police investigate the incident,” Shyam said.
