Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, lodged in Patiala central prison to serve a one-year jail term in a 1988 road rage death case, was taken to Rajindra Hospital in Patiala under heavy security on Monday morning for medical examination, official sources said.
The cricketer-turned-politician's counsel HPS Verma said Sidhu has sought a special diet in jail. He said a board of doctors will carry out a detailed medical examination of Sidhu at the hospital.
"The board of doctors will see what special diet is required and then it will submit its report in a local court (in Patiala)," Verma said over the phone.
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According to the counsel, Sidhu cannot consume wheat, sugar, 'maida' and some other food items. "He can have berries, papaya, guava, double-toned milk and food items which do not have fibre and carbohydrates," Verma said.
After the board of doctors carry out a medical examination, a report will be submitted in the court of chief judicial magistrate, he said.
The 58-year-old Congress leader suffers from medical conditions like embolism and has a liver ailment. In 2015, Sidhu also underwent treatment for acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT) at a hospital in Delhi.
DVT is caused by a blood clot in a deep vein which hinders the normal blood flow. Several Congress supporters reached Rajindra Hospital after Sidhu was brought there.
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The former Punjab Congress chief on May 20 was sent to Patiala central jail after he surrendered before a local court. He has been sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court in a 1988 road rage death case.
The apex court had sentenced Sidhu in the 34-year-old case, saying any undue sympathy in imposing an inadequate sentence would do more harm to the justice system and undermine the public confidence in the efficacy of law.
A 65-year-old man, named Gurnam Singh, had died in the incident.
