Delhi cabinet minister Atishi Thursday claimed there was a plot to kill Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in the excise policy case, by denying him home-cooked food and insulin in jail, a charge rejected by the prison authorities.
Her allegations came hours after the ED claimed before a court here that Kejriwal is eating high sugar foods like mangoes and sweets every day despite having type 2 diabetes to create grounds for medical bail or shift to a hospital.
Atihsi told a press conference the chief minister's requests for insulin have been denied by the Tihar jail administration, and attempts to arrange a video conference with his doctor are facing opposition from the ED and the prions officials.
"For the past several days, his blood sugar level has been consistently above 300 mg/dL.".
"Despite Kejriwal's repeated requests, he is not being given insulin, and his sugar level is increasing. He is not being given medication because there is a plot to kill him," she alleged.
Earlier in the day, the ED made the claims about Kejriwal's dietary choices before special judge for CBI and ED cases, Kaveri Baweja, who directed the Tihar jail authorities to file a report in the matter, including Kejriwal's diet chart.
Responding to the claims made by Atishi at her press conference, the Tihar jail administration asserted that what she said about Kejriwal's health issues are incorrect. His fasting sugar level was fine and never reached 300, the jail authorities said.
As per the court orders, he has been served home-cooked food and medicines. His health is being watched and looked after by two doctors in the jail," a jail official, who did not wish to be named, said.
The Tihar jail has 250 patients having sugar issues, which include Kejriwal. All of them are looked after the doctors in their jails, he said.
There was no immediate reaction from ED.
Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party chief Virendra Sachdeva challenged Atishi to produce even a single medical prescription "wherein a doctor has advised oily pooris, spicy food, sweets, banana and mangoes for Kejriwal".
At her press conference, Atishi said Kejriwal is a severe diabetic and accused the ED of lying about his diet.
"Today, the BJP is trying to harm Arvind Kejriwal's health through its 'covert organisation', the ED, attempting to stop his home-cooked meals. The ED has spread rumours and repeatedly lied in the court that Arvind Kejriwal is drinking sweet tea and eating sweets," she said.
She said Kejriwal is allowed to have tea and sweets made with the sweetener 'Erythritol' prescribed by his doctors. He has been suffering from diabetes for 30 years. To keep his blood sugar level under control, he takes 54 units of insulin daily, she shared.
The second lie of the ED is that Kejriwal is eating bananas to increase his blood sugar level, she charged.
"I would like to tell the ED and BJP to consult any diabetes doctor. They always advise serious diabetes patients to keep two things handy for emergencies. They are advised to keep bananas or any kind of toffee or chocolate because blood sugar levels of serious diabetes patients can suddenly drop, posing a risk to their lives," she said.
She said the court's order clearly states that when Kejriwal is in ED custody or judicial custody, he must always carry some kind of toffee and bananas.
"The third lie of the ED is that Arvind Kejriwal eats potato puris every day. Please fear God before telling such lies. The diet chart submitted by the ED itself in court shows that Kejriwal had puris only one day, which was the first day of 'Navratri'," she said.
In Hinduism, on the first day of Navratri, aaloo-puri is prepared as prasad, and everyone eats it, she added.
"The BJP and the ED are spreading all these lies so that they can stop Shri Arvind Kejriwal from consuming home-cooked meals being provided to him. Because once Shri Arvind Kejriwal's home-cooked meal is stopped, no one will know when and what he is being fed in Tihar Jail," she said.
Atishi said Kejriwal has been undergoing an insulin reversal programme since March 1 under a doctor's supervision.
"For this, he was given a special diet, special exercises, besides being instructed to sleep at specific time, along with many other directions. That's why his insulin was stopped. But since his arrest on March 21, Kejriwal's insulin reversal programme has been halted. Due to this, his sugar level has often spiked significantly or dropped suddenly. And for the past several days, his blood sugar level has been consistently above 300 mg/dL," she claimed.
She said Kejriwal has been "repeatedly demanding" insulin from the Tihar jail authorities due to the increased blood sugar levels, but the "jail authorities are not providing him with insulin".
"I want to tell the ED that if they think the BJP will save them, then remember that while the BJP may save them today, the BJP cannot save them from God.
"For, the actions the ED is taking with Kejriwal, even God will not forgive them. Let the BJP and the ED know that the conspiracy they are plotting to take Kejriwal's life, God is watching along with the people of Delhi and the country. Neither the people of Delhi nor the people of the country, nor God, will forgive them for this deed," she added.
Delhi BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said it was "shocking" to see Kejriwal taking a diet "totally harmful for a diabetic person".
"Kejriwal needs to be transferred to a jail not under jurisdiction of the AAP government," she added.
