Ensure proper medical facility to Yasin, High Court directs Tihar Jail

New Delhi, February 2

The Delhi High Court on Friday directed the Superintendent of the Tihar Jail to ensure proper medical treatment to separatist leader Yasin Malik, who is serving life sentence in a terror-funding case. Malik claims to have been suffering from serious cardiac and kidney problems. The high court was informed by the counsel for the Central Government and the Director General of Prisons (Tihar Jail) that the petition has serious suppression of facts and that Malik is refusing treatment being given to him by authorities.

Questions change of doctors

• Yasin Malik claimed that he was being treated by other doctors and the authorities suddenly changed the doctors. A new medical board had been formed.
• Government’s counsel said AIIMS professors were called for diagnosis twice but Yasin refused. The authorities were willing to arrange another consultation with doctors.

Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta asked the counsel for the Centre and DG (Prisons) to produce the record to show that the inmate was refusing treatment and also asked the jail superintendent concerned to place before it the medical report of Malik by the next date of hearing. The high court listed for February 14 Malik’s plea seeking direction to the authorities to produce the record of his treatment and refer him to AIIMS or any private super specialty hospital here or in J&K for proper and necessary treatment as he was suffering from “serious cardiac and kidney ailments”.

The petition has been filed on behalf of Malik through his mother Aatika Malik. As the counsel for the authorities contended that Malik was a “very high risk security prisoner” and therefore the medical team can be brought in the jail itself, the court asked him to place his stand in writing so that it can be considered.

Advocate Rajat Nair, representing the Centre and DG (Prisons), contended that a medical board was constituted by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). However, Malik refused to be examined. He said nowadays consultation with doctors is being held through videoconferencing in jail but the inmate wants to go to the hospital physically. He added that senior professors from AIIMS were called for diagnosis twice but he refused and the authorities are willing to arrange another consultation with the doctors.

On being asked by the court as to what was the objection, Malik’s lawyer said he was earlier being treated by other doctors and suddenly the authorities changed the doctors and a new medical board has been formed. The counsel further said he would seek instructions from his client if he would like to opt for examination by the same set of doctors or by another set of his preference.