A day after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) claimed that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had lost 8.5 kg in prison, Tihar jail sources said on Monday that he had only lost 2 kg, and a medical board of AIIMS was regularly monitoring him.
The sources said the jail administration has written to the Delhi government's Home Department regarding the allegations levelled by AAP ministers and leaders, saying that such a narrative "confuses and misleads the public".
Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh said that the Tihar authorities have accepted Kejriwal's weight loss.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had alleged that the BJP was conspiring to harm Kejriwal's health by keeping him in jail and that he was not getting the necessary medical attention as a diabetic.
Delhi cabinet minister Atishi had expressed concern over Kejriwal's "unexplained weight loss of 8.5 kg" since his arrest and claimed that his sugar level had dropped below 50 mg/dL more than five times in prison.
According to Kejriwal's health report shared by the Tihar sources, Kejriwal weighed 65 kg when he first came to prison on April 1 and 66 kilograms between April 8 and 29.
When he returned to prison on June 2 after a 21-day bail, his weight was 63.5 kg.
"On July 14, his weight was 61.5 kg. So, effectively, he lost 2 kg," an official source said.
According to the sources, Kejriwal is provided home-cooked food but has regularly returned portions since June 3.
The sources said that a medical board of AIIMS has been constantly monitoring the chief minister, and his wife, Sunita Kejriwal, remains in regular touch with the board.
They said the jail administration has written to the Delhi government's Home Department rejecting the AAP's allegations regarding Kejriwal's health.
In its letter, the prison administration said, "Such a narrative confuses and misleads the public with false information and ulterior motives with intent to browbeat the prison administration".
"The blood pressure and sugar levels and weight of the accused are regularly being monitored, and he is provided adequate treatment for all his ailments and regularly has home-cooked food thrice a day. These facts are brought on record in the light of the media vilification being carried out by vested interest groups," it said.
In a statement, AAP MP Sanjay Singh said Tihar authorities have accepted that Kejriwal's sugar levels dropped multiple times and that he has lost weight.
He claimed the AAP chief could go into a coma or suffer a brain stroke if his sugar levels drop while he is asleep.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the Delhi government's now-scrapped excise policy 2021-22. He was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a corruption case related to the alleged scam from Tihar jail on June 26.
The Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail on Friday in the money laundering case, but he remains in jail in connection with the CBI case.
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