'Jaya's hospital bill Rs 6.85 cr, Rs 44.56 L still pending'
Chennai, Dec 19 : Nearly Rs 2.40 crore was spent on food and beverages and rent for rooms during the hospitalisation of late chief minister J Jayalalithaa for 75 days in 2016, which accounted for one-third of the total bill of Rs 6.85 crore raised by the Apollo hospitals, a copy of which has gone viral.
The one page summary of the bill submitted recently to Justice Arumugasamy panel probing the circumstances leading to her death, got leaked and went viral on social media.
The summary shows Rs six crore and 85 lakh as the total bill with a detailed break-up and an outstanding amount of Rs 44.56 lakh.
Under the head 'food and beverage services', the bill showed Rs 1,17,04,925.
The break-up showed consultation fee as Rs 71 lakh.
UK based doctor Richard Beale was paid Rs 92 lakh and a Singapore-based hospital Rs 1.29 crore for professional charges respectively and room rent was Rs 1.24 crore -- which includes the cost of occupancy of several rooms by her attendants -- during the late leader's hospital stay.
The ruling AIADMK is shown as having paid Rs six crore received on June 15, 2017, months after Jayalalithaa's death on December 5, 2016.
Though an amount of Rs 41.13 lakh is shown as being received by the hospital on October 13, 2016, no mention is made of who made that payment.
When contacted about the leak of the bill, both the Justice A Arumughaswamy Commission of Inquiry and a legal counsel for the hospital in the panel denied dissemination from their respective sides.
The bill, however, is genuine and it was submitted in the panel on November 27 this year, the hospital counsel Maimoona Badsha said.
"The bill summary is not a complete factual reflection of all the details because the details were produced in more than 200 pages. We are surprised and shocked that a confidential document, which was submitted to the commission on November 27, is out in the open," Badsha told PTI.
Referring to the head 'food and beverage services', the counsel said it includes a whole lot of people like visitors.
Jayalalithaa had passed away on December 5, 2016 after being treated in the hospital for 75 days from September 22, 2016 for various ailments.
In September last year, the state government had constituted the probe panel under the Commissions of Inquiry Act,mandating it to inquire into the circumstances leading to Jayalalithaa's hospitalisation on September 22, 2016, and treatment provided by the hospital till her demise.
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'MP detained under NSA an emergency': Channi's reference to Amritpal triggers row in LS
Cong distances itself from Channi's 'remarks on Amritpal'
New Delhi, Jul 25: Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi said Thursday that the detention of an elected MP under the NSA was part of an "undeclared emergency" by the Centre, drawing a sharp response from the BJP who said he was referring to jailed radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh.
During a debate in Lok Sabha, the former Punjab chief minister referred to the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections and said, "This is also an emergency that a Member of Parliament elected by 20 lakh people in Punjab has been detained under the NSA (National Security Act) ... He is unable to speak about his constituency here (in Parliament). This is also an emergency."
The Congress said views expressed by Channi "on Amritpal Singh" are his own and do not reflect in any way the position of the party.
"The views expressed by Charanjit Singh Channi, MP on Amritpal Singh are his own, and do not reflect in any way the position of the Indian National Congress," Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
While Channi did not name anyone, BJP leaders said he was speaking about Amritpal Singh.
Singh won the Khadoor Sahib constituency by a margin of around 2 lakh votes in this year's Lok Sabha polls.
In a post on X, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said the Congress must answer whether the party was in support of the idea of Khalistan that led to the assassination of the then prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.
"Batting for separatist who wants tukde tukde of India? Rahul ji must answer - the idea of Khalistan that caused the assassination of PM Indira ji is being hailed !! Why does Congress always bat for separatists and terrorists? Yakub, Afzal, 26/11 jihadis, now K terrorists?" he said.
Union minister Giriraj Singh said Congress MP Channi's remarks made inside Parliament were "unfortunate".
"The Khalistani who assassinated Indira Gandhi has received open support from Channi today, which means the Congress is siding with the Khalistanis. This is an attack on the integrity of India...what can I say, I will say action should be taken," he told PTI videos.
BJP MP Dinesh Sharma demanded the expulsion of Channi by Congress.
"Today, Channi, who doesn't even have the status of a 'chavanni' (a quarter-rupee coin), is speaking in support of terrorists and glorifying them. He is working at the behest of anti-national elements from Canada," he told PTI Videos.
"The Congress should expel him, and if Congress doesn't take action against him, it means that somewhere Congress is in cahoots with these anti-social and anti-national elements," he said.
Channi blamed the central government for an "undeclared emergency" in the country even as a heated exchange with BJP's Ravneet Singh Bittu during a debate in the Lok Sabha led to a brief adjournment in the proceedings.
During a debate on the Union Budget in the Lower House, Channi also held the BJP government responsible for farmers being termed Khalistanis. He added that his home state Punjab was ignored in this year's budget.
Channi said, "It's not a budget to save the country, it's just to save their government. They haven't addressed the floods in Punjab, haven't raised wages, and have ignored Punjab in this budget. Jalandhar was declared a smart city, but it still has dirty water and a significant drug problem."
The Lok Sabha was adjourned for 30 minutes amid a verbal spat between the former Punjab chief minister and the Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries Ravneet Singh Bittu over certain personal remarks till 2 pm.
Channi referred to the assassination of Bittu's grandfather, former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh. This led to a war of words between Bittu, who recently quit the Congress to join the BJP, and Channi.
Bittu countered by making certain personal remarks against Channi and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, triggering an uproar.
In a heated exchange, Channi told Bittu, "Your grandfather became a martyr, the day you left Congress." To which, the BJP leader retorted, "My grandfather sacrificed for the country, not for Congress." He also called Channi "the most corrupt person in Punjab".
During his address to the Lok Sabha, Channi accused the government of creating conditions similar to an emergency.
He listed the lack of progress in the Sidhu Moosewala case, action against opposition leaders by central agencies, and alleged mistreatment of farmers, women athletes, and journalists as evidence of this.
The Congress leader also pointed to the long-standing unrest in Manipur and the Hathras gang rape case, in which he said the victim's cremation was rushed.
"The country is facing an undeclared emergency and the BJP is responsible," Channi said.
"Farmers are called Khalistani when they make demands, which aren't fulfilled. This is also an emergency," he added.
The central government, he said, has exhausted its ideas and sincerity after ten years in power, pointing to the absence of the prime minister and the finance minister during "such an important discussion".
Channi said, "I come from a poor family and got my education thanks to the Congress government. The BJP's worst move in 2014 was cutting scholarships for minorities and Dalit children."
The Lok Sabha was adjourned twice in the post-lunch period as a war of words broke out between the treasury and opposition benches, triggered by Channi's spat with Bittu.
