Deputy chairperson of Apollo Hospitals Dr. Preetha Reddy has asserted that former Tamil Nadu chief-minister J. Jayalalithaa was in a state of unconsciousness when she was brought to the Hospital on the night of 23rd September last year. “She later recovered very well before breathing her last,” Dr. Reddy said.

Though more than a year has gone by since the passing away of the former chief-minister, the mystery surrounding her demise hasn’t yet been dispelled.  Speaking to a private news television channel in New Delhi yesterday, Dr. Preetha came out in the open about the condition of Jayalalithaa at the time of her admission and who were with her during her stay at the Hospital.

“Jayalalithaa was given top-class treatment involving doctors/specialists from Apollo, AIIMS in New Delhi and from countries abroad. A Commission of Inquiry has been set up to probe her demise and I hope that the COI would unearth whatever mystery is surrounding her demise. Each patient has his/her own rights and they usually don’t prefer leakage of data regarding treatment given to them by the Hospital.

“When Jayalalithaa was under treatment, only those allowed by her were staying close to her. Popular doctors, trained nurses and physiotherapists from Singapore were involved in the treatment. Nobody who wasn’t connected with the treatment was allowed to go near Jayalalithaa. This is the practice followed universally. I wasn’t near Jayalalithaa when her LTI was taken to nominate party candidate for by-polls.

“She was struggling to breathe when brought to the Hospital on the night of 23rd September and was attended to immediately by a top team of doctors.  Her health condition improved vastly due to the treatment; unfortunately, she passed away at a time when she was recovering. There wasn’t absence of any transparency with regard to the treatment administered to Jayalalithaa,” Dr. Preetha concluded.