A specialist doctor has been flown in from the UK to examine Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa even as there is no official statement on her health condition from the state government or the Apollo Hospital since Thursday, giving rise to speculations. A medical bulletin was expected Saturday.
A Consultant Intensivist at the London Bridge Hospital, Dr Richard John Beale, examined her in the hospital on Friday. He will be there for few days to consult on the case. The CM was admitted to hospital with complaints of high fever and dehydration on September 22. She is known to suffer from diabetes, cellulitis, and hypertension. As per the last medical update, she was “responding well” to treatment but had been advised to stay in hospital for observation.
Meanwhile, Reegan S Bell, an advocate in the Supreme Court, has urged President Pranab Mukherjee to invoke Article 356 of the Constitution and called for a report from the Tamil Nadu Governor and take appropriate action as the state machinery has come to a grinding halt. Even the State Cabinet is not aware of the actual health status of her with rumours spreading chaos among public through electronic media and social media.
press release jayalalitha situation is bad pic.twitter.com/qA1CdTNomN
— Telugu Film Reporter (@baluadusumilli) October 1, 2016
The Chennai police commissioner had warned on Thursday against spreading any rumour over the chief minister, adding they will be detained under the IT Act. A case was filed on Friday against one Tamizhachi who had reportedly posted on Facebook that the CM has died.
On Friday, DMK chief M Karunanidhi had called on the governor to intervene in the matter, adding the Governor had not gone and met the Chief Minister who has been in hospital for more than a week. He wished speedy recovery of the CM and demanded the state government release a photograph of her in the hospital as she chaired a meeting of state officials on the Cauvery water dispute and dictated her statement to be read out in Delhi.