Arun Jaitley Health: He is being treated at AIIMS in New Delhi, where he was admitted on August 9 after he complained of breathlessness and restlessness. (File Photo)
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BJP leader and former finance minister Arun Jaitley’s health condition has deteriorated, news agency PTI reported on Saturday. Jaitley is being treated at AIIMS in New Delhi, where he was admitted on August 9 after he complained of breathlessness and restlessness.
AIIMS, however, has not issued a bulletin on his health condition since August 10.
Jaitley, 66, is reportedly on life support, with a multidisciplinary team of doctors monitoring his condition.
On August 19, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi had said Jaitley was “critical but responding“. Prior to this, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on August 16 said, “Doctors at AIIMS are doing the best they can.”
Modi and Vardhan are among a string of leaders who have visited Jaitley in hospital this week, including BJP veteran leader L K Advani, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Delhi L-G Anil Baijal, BJP’s Maneka Gandhi and Uma Bharti.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, Jitendra Singh and Ram Vilas Paswan have also visited the hospital to enquire about his health.
Jaitley was admitted to AIIMS earlier this year in May. In 2018, he had undergone a kidney transplant at the hospital too. In a tweet on April 6, 2018, he said: “I am being treated for kidney-related problems & certain infections that I have contracted.”
In September 2014, Jaitley had undergone bariatric surgery because of a long-standing diabetic condition.
Due to his ill-health, Jaitley had decided against contesting the Lok Sabha elections this year. He had written to PM Modi saying he would like to stay away from “any responsibility” on account of his ill health.
A lawyer by profession, Jaitley was an important part of Modi’s cabinet in the BJP government’s first term. He held the finance and defence portfolios, and often acted as the chief troubleshooter of the government.
(With inputs from PTI)
