Lalu rushed to hospital, discharged after a couple of hours

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad was rushed to a hospital here today after he complained of vertigo, breathing problems and uneasiness.

He was discharged after a couple of hours. The former Bihar chief minister would visit Mumbai next week and then Bengaluru for further treatment, his family physician said.

Prasad, who is serving sentences in three fodder scam cases in a Ranchi jail, is out on a six-week provisional bail granted by the Jharkhand High Court on medical grounds.

"The former Bihar chief minister was admitted here, following complaints of vertigo, because of which he had fallen at home. He also complained of breathing problems and uneasiness. He has thoroughly been examined by our specialists. His records show that he suffers from a number of ailments like diabetes, high blood pressure and kidney problems," Manish Mandal, medical superintendent at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS), told reporters.

The RJD supremo spent nearly a couple of hours at the hospital before being discharged. He was visited by senior party colleague Abdul Bari Siddiqui.

Later, Prasad's family physician S K Sinha told reporters that the RJD chief was discharged as his condition was stable.

On Tuesday, Prasad would visit Mumbai, where he had undergone a bypass surgery a few years ago, Sinha said, adding that after consultations with doctors in Mumbai, he would leave for Bengaluru for the treatment of his kidney problem.

The RJD chief had been in jail since December 23, when he was convicted in a case related to fraudulent withdrawal of money from the Deoghar treasury in the 1990s, when he was the chief minister of undivided Bihar. He was convicted in two more fodder scam cases while he was in jail.

Poor health had led to Prasad being shifted from the Hotwar jail in Ranchi to the RIMS hospital, from where he was taken to the AIIMS in Delhi for further treatment. He was discharged from the AIIMS after a month amid strong protests by the RJD supremo himself as well as his party colleagues.

Prasad had come to Patna last week on a three-day parole to attend the marriage of his elder son Tej Pratap Yadav, while a decision on his provisional bail was pending.

The bail was granted to him while he was in Patna. After the expiry of the parole, Prasad had returned to Ranchi on Monday and spent a couple of days in jail, before being released after furnishing bonds and sureties.