Jayalalithaa was admitted to hospital with fever and dehydration on September 22.
Highlights
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister hospitalised on September 22
- Examined by UK specialists and experts from AIIMS
- Doctors say she is "responding well" to treatment
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa needs "a longer stay in hospital" and is "making gradual progress," said doctors today who are attending to the 68-year-old politician. The update, provided this evening, confirmed that Ms Jayalalithaa remains on respiratory support and is being treated, including by a UK specialist, for lung problems.
Ms Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospital on September 22. At first, her party, the AIADMK, said she was being treated for fever and dehydration. Its publicly-shared forecasts for when she is to leave hospital have repeatedly been proven wrong, escalating speculation of how unwell Ms Jayalalithaa is.
Till recently, large gaps in the information shared on her health added to the uncertainty.
Yesterday, three doctors from Delhi's AIIMS hospital have joined the Chennai doctors attending to the former movie star who is one of the country's most powerful and popular politicians.
The AIADMK received some good news this morning with the Madras High Court ruling that the government does not need to make a formal statement on the Chief Minister's health or choose a stand-in for her while she is in hospital.
Ms Jayalalithaa's opponents last week demanded that a photograph be released of her to confirm that she is well enough to remain in charge of the state. Governor C Vidyasagar Rao who visited Ms Jayalalithaa in hospital a few days ago has reportedly advised the party that a daily bulletin on her health be shared nightly by 8 pm.
Outside Apollo Hospital in Chennai, hundreds of fans of Ms Jayalalithaa have gathered in a mass vigil and say they will not go home till they are certain that she is better.
The AIADMK has filed police cases against four people for misreporting the party chief's health on social media.