As former finance minister Arun Jaitley continues to be on a life support system, veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Lal Krishna Advani visited him at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) hospital in New Delhi on Monday (August 19) afternoon.
A bevy of politicians, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union minister Smriti Irani and Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, also visited AIIMS on Sunday to enquire about Jaitley's health condition.
The 66-year-old leader was taken to the AIIMS on August 9 after he complained of breathlessness and restlessness. Since August 10, AIIMS has not issued any bulletin on Jaitley's health condition.
According to reports, Jaitley is on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) support. A multidisciplinary team of doctors is consistently monitoring his condition.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said, "Doctors at AIIMS are doing the best they can."
The lawyer-turned-politician had been an important part in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Cabinet in the BJP government's first term. He held the finance and defence portfolios, and often acted as the chief troubleshooter of the government. However, Jaitley did not contest the Lok Sabha 2019 election presumably because of his ill-health.
It is said that Jaitley's health condition deteriorated after he underwent a kidney transplant on May 14 last year.
