Court directs AIIMS to form medical board, examine jailed Kejriwal amid insulin row

A DELHI court on Monday directed the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) to constitute a medical board to examine Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal, amid a row over insulin administration in Tihar jail.

Kejriwal on Monday wrote to the superintendent of Tihar jail where he has been lodged since April 1, claiming he has been asking for insulin every day and that AIIMS doctors never said there was no reason to worry about his diabetic condition.

His letter to the superintendent comes a day after the Tihar administration issued a statement stating they had arranged his video conference with senior specialists from AIIMS during which neither "the issue of insulin was raised by Kejriwal, nor was it suggested by the doctors".

The chief minister alleged that the Tihar administration issued a "false and misleading" statement under "political pressure".

There was no immediate reaction from Tihar jail authorities to the Delhi chief minister's allegations.

The court order drew reaction from Aam Aadmi Party with Delhi minister Atishi said that the order proves that Arvind Kejriwal was not getting proper medical care in judicial custody.

“The verdict of Rouse Avenue Court proves that for the last 22 days, Arvind Kejriwal was not getting proper medical care in judicial custody in Tihar Jail. Today, after 22 days of his judicial custody, the court has ordered that a medical board of 1 specialist diabetes doctor, 1 specialist diabetologist and oncologist should be formed which will take complete care of Arvind Kejriwal for getting medical treatment," Delhi minister Atishi said.

"So this makes it clear that despite having such severe diabetes for 22 days, despite his sugar level being above 300, despite his request for isolation, he was not getting proper medical care. So we hope that the medical board of AIIMS, which will have specialist diabetes doctors, will be found today itself, will check upon Arvind Kejriwal and will start the process of insulating him from today itself...," she added.

‘Conspiracy to kill Arvind Kejriwal’: AAP

The development comes two days after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged that there was a “conspiracy to kill" Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in jail as he was denied access to insulin for his type-2 diabetes.

"Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is not being given insulin. If a patient with diabetes is not given insulin on time, for that person, it becomes a question of life or death. A conspiracy is being hatched to kill him (Arvind Kejriwal). The people of Delhi will give a reply to this crime," Sanjay Singh told reporters.

"The person who provided electricity, water, and other facilities to the citizens of Delhi... Kejriwal who arranged free medicines for the people... you see, today there is such a cruel government in the country that is not arranging medicines for Kejriwal ji and insulin," he added.

Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 in the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy case and was sent to judicial custody on April 1.