Former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley remains critical, on life support at AIIMS Delhi

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Aug 16, 2019 : Former finance minister and senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley remained in a critical condition and was put on life support at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi by Friday afternoon. President Ram Nath Kovind, health minister Harsh Vardhan and minister of state for health Ashwini Kumar Choubey visited him at the hospital, Zeenews reported.

 

Jaitley was admitted in the country’s premier medical institution on August 9 morning and was put on ventilator late in the night. He has since been undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU). According to a release by media and protocol division of AIIMS on the same day, the former minister is under the supervision of a team comprising multidisciplinary doctors, “At present he is haemodynamically stable”. The hospital has not issued any medical bulletin after August 9 on Jaitley’s health.

The 66-year-old leader, who held several important portfolios in Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi governments, has not been keeping well for some time. He did not even contest the 2019 Lok Sabha election citing health reasons. In February, Piyush Goyal had to present the interim budget as Jaitley was in the US for treatment.

After Modi government retained power after the Lok Sabha elections, Jaitley wrote to Prime Minister Modi, saying he would not take up any responsibility/portfolio in the government due to his deteriorating health condition.

A lawyer by profession, Jaitley has been one of the most important leaders in the Modi Cabinet from 2014 to 2019 and often acted as the chief troubleshooter for the government.