"Would Rather Die": Jailed Activist Stan Swamy On Mumbai Hospital Treatment

Stan Swamy, 84, was produced before a bench of Justices SJ Kathawalla and S P Tavade through video-conference from the Taloja prison in neighbouring Navi Mumbai where he is lodged as an under-trial.

Jesuit priest Stan Swamy, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoists links case, told the Bombay High Court on Friday that his health has deteriorated steadily since his arrest, but he would rather "suffer and possibly die" than getting treatment at a state-run hospital in Mumbai. Mr Swamy, 84, was produced before a bench of Justices SJ Kathawalla and S P Tavade through video-conference from the Taloja prison in neighbouring Navi Mumbai where he is lodged as an under-trial. The prison authorities also submitted a medical report from Mumbai's JJ Hospital, where Swamy had been examined earlier this week in compliance with the high court's order. The bench read out the report, which stated that Swamy suffers from extreme hearing loss in both ears, his upper limbs were sluggish and suffered tremors. It also said that he required physical assistance in the form of walking stick or wheelchair. However, his overall condition including the pulse rate were stable and Swamy was "responsive" and "cooperative," the report said.