New Delhi: Former Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, lodged in Patiala's Central Jail in connection with a road rage case, was admitted to Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research's hepatology department (PGI) Chandigarh Monday due to a liver-related problem, PTI reported. Sidhu might remain admitted for the next two to three days. He suffered pain in his stomach after which the medical officer of Patiala prison referred him to PGI. Several tests were conducted after which the cricketer-turned-politician was admitted to the general ward.
In the evening, PGIMER issued a statement, saying Sidhu has been kept under observation and is stable.
"Former Indian cricketer Shri Navjot Singh Sidhu has been admitted in hepatology ward, Nehru Hospital Extension, PGIMER, Chandigarh, due to liver-related problems and requires further evaluation.
"He has been kept under observation and is stable now," the statement said, quoting Professor Virender Singh, head of the hepatology department at the hospital.
The former Congress's Punjab unit chief was sent to Patiala Central Jail on May 20 after surrendering to a local court. The cricketer-turned-politician was sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court in a 1998 road rage case. A 65-year-old man, named Gurnam Singh, had died in the accident.
The 58-year-old was taken to Patiala's Rajendra Hospital for examination about two weeks back. His lawyer SPS Verma had recently said that Sidhu had requested a special diet in jail. According to the lawyer, Sidhu cannot eat items made of wheat, sugar, maida, and some other food items.
"He can have berries, papaya, guava, double-toned milk and food items which do not have fibre and carbohydrates," Verma had said as per PTI.
As per PTI, Sidhu suffers from medical conditions like embolism and has a liver ailment. In 2015, Sidhu had undergone treatment for acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT) at a hospital in Delhi. DVT is caused by a blood clot in a deep vein which hinders the normal blood flow.