Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Apr 18: The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday complained to a Delhi court that the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was deliberately consuming food high in sugar like mangoes and sweets daily despite having Type 2 diabetes only to create grounds for medical bail.
This immediately brought rebuttal from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which claimed that the ED was deliberately lying to the court only to deny Mr Kejriwal home-food permitted by the court on health ground.
The ED made the claim before special judge for CBI and ED cases, Kaveri Baweja, who directed the Tihar jail authorities to file a report in the matter, including Mr Kejriwal’s diet chart. Mr Kejriwal has moved the court seeking permission to consult his regular doctor via video conference because of fluctuating sugar levels. The judge directed the authorities concerned to file the report by Friday when the court is likely to take up the matter again.
“Arvind Kejriwal is eating high sugar content food despite having type 2 diabetes. He is consuming ‘aloo poori’, mango, sweets, daily. This is being done to make grounds for medical bail,” the ED told the court while opposing Mr Kejriwal’s request for a video consult with his regular doctor.
Refuting the ED charge, the Delhi minister and AAP leader Atishi claimed it to be a “conspiracy to kill” Mr Kejriwal. “If the BJP is not able to defeat Arvind Kejriwal in three months (the Lok Sabha election) then a plan is being hatched to kill him by keeping him in jail.”
“Everyone knows Arvind Kejriwal is a patient of severe diabetes… he has been suffering for the past 30 years. To keep his sugar level under control he takes 54 units of insulin daily,” she said, “Ask any doctor… only someone who has such severe diabetes takes this much insulin. That is why the court allowed Arvind Kejriwal to eat home-cooked food… and eat food prescribed by the doctor.”
“But today the BJP through its affiliated organisation (the ED), is trying to spoil the health of Kejriwalji… Today the Enforcement Directorate lied repeatedly,” she declared, hitting back at arguments made today by the probe agency in the court that Mr Kejriwal regularly ate mangoes and sweets, and drank tea with sugar.
“None this is advised for diabetes patients,” The agency’s lawyer, Zuhaib Hussain, told reporters after the hearing, “(Mr Kejriwal’s) diet chart has mangoes and sweets on it… it has been placed before the court. (Mr Kejriwal) is regularly consuming foods not permitted for any diabetic patient.”
Atishi hit back at that argument, saying, “ED said Kejriwal is drinking sweet tea and eating sweets. This is a complete lie… Kejriwalji is allowed to tea and sweets with a sweetener (as) prescribed by the doctor. This is a low-calorie sweetener which is given to diabetic patients.”
She also slammed the ED over claims Mr Kejriwal was eating bananas to increase his blood sugar level which reportedly fell to a dangerously low 46 Mg when he was first incarcerated. “I would like to say to the ED… talk to any diabetes doctor. Patients are told to keep banana and some kind of toffee or chocolate (with them at all times).”
“If the ED read the court order, it is clearly written that when Kejriwalji is in ED custody, or jail, he must always have some kind of toffee and banana (with him),” she said, referring to a direction that the AAP leader be allowed home-cooked food, bottled drinking water, and a supply of toffees.
Atishi also attacked the ED for saying Mr Kejriwal ate food like oil-rich and fatty foods like poori and aloo every day. “ED people… fear God! The diet chart you deposited in court shows Kejriwalji had this only on one day – first day of Navratri. Will you not let us eat even Navratri prasad (offerings)?”
“These lies are being spread so the ED can stop home food given to Kejriwalji,” she continued, criticising the agency for also not giving him insulin – a life-saving medication for diabetes patients.
The judge, meanwhile, sent Chanpreet Singh, who allegedly managed the AAP’s funds in the 2022 Goa Assembly elections, to judicial custody till April 23 after he was produced before the court on expiry of his ED custody. The ED has alleged a large part of the ₹100 crore the AAP received as kickbacks from the South Group was used for the Goa state polls.
The judge also extended till April 26 the judicial custody of AAP leader Manish Sisodia in the money laundering case linked to the alleged excise scam. The judge extended Sisodia’s custody after he was produced before the court through a video conference. Mr Sisodia’s co-accused and party colleague, Sanjay Singh, who was recently granted bail by the Supreme Court, also appeared before the court through video conference.
Mr Sisodia’s judicial custody in the corruption case lodged by the CBI in the alleged scam also expires on April 26. The CBI as well as the ED have alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the Delhi Excise Policy 2020-21, undue favours were extended to licence holders, licence fee was waived or reduced and licences were extended without the competent authority’s approval.