Varavara Rao discharged after a month in hospital

The accused poet-cum activist tests -ve for Covid-19

A month after he was admitted to a hospital, poet and activist Varavara Rao, an accused in the Bhima KoregaonElgar Parishad case, was discharged from Nanavati Hospital on Thursday afternoon. According to a hospital source, Rao was stable and all his health reports were given to family members.

Rao was first admitted to Sir JJ Hospital in July after he lost consciousness while lodged in Taloja Jail. Later, he tested positive for COVID-19 and was shifted to St George Hospital on July 16. However, he fell from a cot during treatment and was subsequently shifted to Nanavati Hospital on July 19 for neurological treatment.

Last week, a report submitted by the hospital had stated that Rao had comorbidities and while his electrolyte levels had normalised, his neurological status was unstable as he was disoriented when he spoke.

“Before discharging him, all his health parameters were checked, which were found to be normal. He also tested negative for coronavirus,” said a doctor.

Varavara Rao's nephew N Venugopal said that the discharge was expected as the Bombay High Court would be hearing the appeal to his interim bail plea on Monday. "They will argue for rejecting the plea by telling the court that he is better as certified by the hospital," said Venugopal.

According to him, the same tactic had been employed the previous time when the octogenarian had been hospitalized in May-end and discharged hurriedly on June 1 as the special NIA court was to hear his interim bail plea the following day. "The NIA is trying to hoodwink the court by showing a 'stable, normal and discharged' certificate," the nephew alleged. Releasing Rao on bail and allowing the family to look after his delicate health was the only solution, he said. There was no clarity on whether Rao had been taken back to Taloja jail where he had been lodged before the discharge. Venugopal added that sending Rao back to jail could push him back to dire consequences.

He added, "It is proved that jail does not have expertise or equipment to treat even normal electrolyte imbalance, not to speak of much larger neurological issues."