The condition of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is stated to have worsened over the last 24 hours. Doctors treating him at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) said the veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader was put on life support late Wednesday.
In a statement issued on Wednesday night, the hospital said: “Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been admitted for the last nine weeks at AIIMS. Unfortunately, his condition has worsened over the last 24 hours. His condition is critical and he is on life-support system.”
The 93-year-old leader was admitted at AIIMS on June 11 and was being treated for a kidney tract infection, urinary tract infection, low urine output and chest congestion.
Earlier in the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited AIIMS to enquire about the veteran leader’s health. AIIMS authorities said the PM visited the hospital around 7.18 pm. He had been reportedly with Vajpayee for about 15 minutes.
Around 6.30 pm, Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani had also visited AIIMS to see the 93-year-old.
After Modi, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi also paid a visit to the hospital.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP president Amit Shah had visited the hospital on Saturday.
Vajpayee is under the supervision of Dr Randeep Guleria, a pulmonologist, who is currently the Director of AIIMS. Guleria has served as personal physician to Vajpayee for over three decades.
The BJP stalwart, a diabetes patient, has only one functional kidney. In 2009, he had suffered a stroke, which weakened his cognitive abilities. Subsequently, he developed dementia.