Delhi CM Kejriwal Doesn't Need Insulin, Tihar Jail Report Says. AAP Alleges 'Slow Death' Plot — Top Updates

Delhi CM Kejriwal has been lodged inside Tihar Jail since April 1.

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal. ( Image Source :PTI )

Amid the row over Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's diabetes treatment and request for insulin in Tihar jail, the jail authorities said on Saturday that the AAP national convenor was neither advised any insulin nor any requirement of insulin was indicated, as reported by news agency PTI. In its report to the Delhi Lt. Governor regarding Kejriwal's health status, the jail authorities claimed that the Delhi CM was on an insulin reversal program and the doctor had stopped insulin dosage much before his arrest.

This comes as the Aam Aadmi Party alleged on Saturday that Kejriwal is being pushed towards a “slow death” inside Tihar jail by denying him insulin and consultations with his doctor. In the report, it is stated that Kejriwal, who is under the care of a Telangana-based private doctor for diabetes, stopped taking insulin a few months ago and, at the time of his arrest, he was on a basic anti-diabetes oral tablet called Metformin, PTI reported, citing officials.

The report further stated that Delhi CM's health was reviewed by a medicine specialist on April 10 and April 15. The specialist advised oral anti-diabetic drugs and it is "incorrect to state that Kejriwal was denied insulin at any point of time" during his treatment, it said.

Top Updates:

1. The report submitted by the Tihar jail authorities said that after examining Kejriwal the Medicine Specialist noted that his blood sugar levels are not alarming, and administration of insulin is not required.
2. "Considering all parameters and vitals of undertrial prisoner (Kejriwal) since his lodgment in judicial custody, his blood sugar levels are not alarming, and administration of insulin is not required as of now." The Tihar administration, in a letter to AIIMS seeking a diet plan for the AAP chief, said Kejriwal had been consuming high-sugar food such as "sweets, laddoos, bananas, mangoes, fruit chaat, fried food, namkeen, bhujia, sweetened tea, poori-aloo, pickles and other high cholesterol food on a regular basis", the report said, as quoted by PTI.
3. Speaking on the report, Delhi minister and AAP leader Atishi alleged that a conspiracy is going on in the jail to murder Kejriwal. "Tihar jail's report shows BJP's conspiracy. Any doctor will say that a blood sugar level of 300 is dangerous. Attempt to murder CM Kejriwal in the jail is going on at the behest of BJP. What is the difficulty for the jail administration to administer insulin to CM Kejriwal? He has been taking insulin for the last 12 years. He used to take 50 units of insulin every day before going to jail," Atishi said, as quoted by ANI.
4. Speaking at a press conference, AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj said that Kejriwal, who has Type-2 diabetes, has been asking for insulin and a video conferencing with his family doctor but his requests are being denied by the jail administration, as reported by news agency PTI. "I want to say with full responsibility that a conspiracy is underway for the slow death of Kejriwal," Bharadwaj claimed citing blood sugar readings of the Delhi CM in jail.
5. Bharadwaj also lashed out at the Tihar administration, BJP, Centre, and Delhi LG for allegedly denying insulin to Kejriwal and said the Delhi Chief Minister had been suffering from diabetes for the last 20–22 years.
6. According to the report, the diet plan provided by AIIMS has "strictly prohibited" most of the food items he is eating. Kejriwal is only allowed to consume 20 ml of oil per day in his food.
7. The Tihar administration has said that, according to a government circular, no referral can be made to any private hospital, as is being demanded by Kejriwal for videoconferencing with his doctor. The administration submitted in its report that there is adequate availability of insulin in the jail dispensary and it can be administered to Kejriwal "as and when required", the officials added, as reported by PTI.
8. On Friday, Kejriwal's council Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi said that he has not been administered insulin to control his sugar levels since his arrest, terming it “shocking” and “alarming”. The ED had on Thursday claimed before the court that Kejriwal was eating food high in sugar like mangoes and sweets every day, despite having Type-2 diabetes, to create grounds for medical bail.
9. The AAP supremo, however, refuted the ED’s claims by asserting before a court that the food he consumed was in conformity with the diet chart prepared by his doctor. “Out of 48 meals sent from home, only three times mangoes were there…,” Singhvi told the court, as quoted by PTI.
10. Bharadwaj, who holds the portfolio of health in Delhi government, said Kejriwal was allowed by the court to use a machine in the jail to monitor his daily blood sugar levels. "Overall, it was a conspiracy to finish Kejriwal so his multiple organ damage and when he comes out of jail after 2-4 months he goes for treatment of kidney, heart and other organs," as quoted by PTI.