Former Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain’s health has deteriorated during his time in jail, prompting urgent medical attention, said Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
He was admitted to the Safdarjung Hospital on Monday morning after complaining of severe spinal pain. Satyendar Jain’s condition has deteriorated after a debilitating injury from a fall in the jail washroom, which resulted in a spinal injury leaving him in excruciating pain. The gravity of the situation demands immediate spinal surgery, as recommended by his attending doctors, said AAP.
AAP claimed Jain suffers from acute lumbar pain, causing vertigo and chronic lower back pain due to a slipped disc. The pain radiates throughout his lower limbs, leaving him with a constant tingling sensation and decreased mobility.
A recent MRI conducted on May 3 demonstrates degeneration in all intervertebral discs of Satyendar Jain leading the doctors to advise urgent spinal/vertebral surgery and proper post-operative care, said the AAP statement.
However, Jain has been placed as No 416 on a waiting list by Jail authorities and is expected to be able to undergo the surgery only after a further five months, the ruling party in Delhi said.
AAP statement further said Satyendar Jain is also suffering from sleep apnea which poses a grave threat, with his breathing frequently seizing during sleep at night, potentially leading to dire consequences. As a result, he has to sleep with the assistance of a BiPAP machine which continuously pushes air into his lungs.
Moreover, the scars of COVID-19 last year have not fully healed. He carries a patch on his lungs ever since his near-fatal encounter with the virus he caught while working as the health minister, during the peak of the pandemic, said AAP.
Earlier this month, on May 15, Satyendar Jain moved a plea in the Supreme Court, seeking bail in the alleged money laundering case against him. He has challenged the Delhi High Court’s order dismissing his bail plea in the alleged case.
Last week, the Supreme Court sought the response of the Enforcement Directorate(ED) on the bail plea. A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and Hima Kohli issued notice to the ED and granted liberty to Satyendar Jain to move before the vacation bench for relief. He has been in custody since May 30 last year.
Reacting to the Satyendar Jain photos captured in the hospital, CM Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, “I pray to God for the betterment of Satyendar Jain ji’s health soon. The people of Delhi and the whole country are watching this arrogance and oppression of the BJP government very closely. Even God will never forgive them for oppression. The public is with us in this struggle, God is with us, we are the disciples of Sardar Bhagat Singh. Our fight against oppression, injustice and dictatorship will continue.”
Jain was arrested on May 30, 2022, under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by Enforcement Directorate and is presently in Judicial Custody in the case.
The ED case is based on a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) complaint registered on the allegation that Satyender Jain had acquired movable properties in the name of various persons from February 14, 2015, to May 31, 2017, which he could not satisfactorily account for.