Jailed Congress leader Navjot Sidhu admitted to hospital for examination

Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, lodged in Patiala central jail, was admitted to Chandigarh's PGIMER on Monday afternoon, sources said.

Sidhu underwent medical examination at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research's Hepatology department, hospital sources said.

In the afternoon, Sidhu was admitted to the PGIMER where he had been brought under heavy security from Patiala prison.

More tests were expected to be conducted, sources said.

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.

About two weeks back, Sidhu was taken to Rajindra Hospital in Patiala for medical examination.

The cricketer-turned-politician's counsel HPS Verma had recently said Sidhu had sought a special diet in jail.

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 had 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.

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.