Delhi court refuses to allow Kejriwal’s wife to attend his medical examination

Delhi court rejects Arvind Kejriwal's request for wife's presence during consultations, allows access to medical records and consultation.

A Delhi court on July 6 rejected the application filed by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, seeking directions to the Tihar Jail authorities to allow his wife, Sunita Kejriwal, to remain present during his consultations with doctors.

The court, however, allowed Ms. Kejriwal to access her husband’s medical records, and permitted her to independently consult the court-constituted All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) medical board on his behalf.

Special Judge Kaveri Baweja, while declining permission to Ms. Kejriwal, said that the Delhi Prison Rules only permitted the presence of a family member as an attendant with an undertrial prisoner, in consultation with the medical officer-in-charge, when the prisoner is admitted to a hospital outside the prison’s premises.

“This court sees no reason to carve out an exception for the Applicant [Mr. Kejriwal] by going against the Prison Rules, more particularly in view of the submission of the jail authorities that several other inmates are also undergoing treatment for the same ailment as the Applicant and who have also not been permitted to have an attendant,” the court noted.

The Chief Minister had earlier asked the court to provide his medical records to his wife as she was “instrumental in managing his health over the years” and had knowledge of his medical history. He had also asked that Ms. Kejriwal may be permitted to independently consult and seek advice from the medical board.

The court allowed both requests. “The said submissions appear to be justified and in this regard, it is directed that in case of such a query, the wife of the Applicant may independently approach the concerned medical board/doctors, who may have a meeting/consultation with her to discuss the method of preparation of medically prescribed diet of the applicant, if so permitted under the Hospital Rules,” the court said.