Delhi: Maoist admitted to AIIMS, likely to be operated; HC told

New Delhi: A suspected Maoist, suffering from brain tumour, has been admitted to the AIIMS for undergoing an urgent operation, the Delhi High Court was informed on Tuesday.

Justice Vibhu Bakhru, who had yesterday asked Delhi Police and authorities at All India Institute of Medical Sciences to immediately attend to 38-year-old undertrial Chandan Deonath, disposed of the plea saying the purpose has been achieved.

"It was an emergent situation and you have been provided medical facilities so now you withdraw your petition," the court told Peoples' Union For Democratic Rights (PUDR), which had filed the plea.

Jharkhand Police, which has been criticised for lodging Deonath in a "verandah" of Hauz Khas police station, said that it did not take him Tihar jail to ensure his convenience as the hospital had asked him to come again for necessary tests in the morning hours.

Earlier, the court had come to the help of Deonath by asking city police and AIIMS authorities to provide "immediate treatment" to him. Deonath, who has been in Saraikela jail in Jamshedpur district of Jharkhand since November 27, 2007 for his alleged Maoist activities, is partially paralysed and has been "housed in a verandah" of Hauz Khas police station since September 9, awaiting his turn for a surgery at AIIMS, the NGO had said in the plea.

Deonath is suffering from brain tumour and pineal tumour with hydrocephalus, it said. Deonath and PUDR, in their plea filed through lawyers Rishabh Sancheti, Padma Priya and Ashish Virmani, had sought directions that the undertrial be "provided with appropriate medical care, on an immediate basis".

"Respondents (Centre, AIIMS, Jharkhand and Delhi Police) must fix accountability for the inhuman treatment met out to Petitioner no. 1, so that such violation of fundamental rights be forthwith proscribed," the plea had said.

Deonath was initially treated at Ranchi Institute of Medical Sciences and was diagnosed with a brain tumour, pineal tumour With hydrocephalus and found to be in need of surgery. He was then referred to AIIMS on August 29 for the surgery and was housed at the verandah in the police station in an "inhuman condition" and is waiting for the surgery as the queue is long at the AIIMS, the plea said, adding that he has also suffered paralysis on the right side.