BOMBAY, 26 April 2006 — There was no change yesterday in the health condition of senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pramod Mahajan. He continued to be on life support system in a critical condition, three days after being shot at by his younger brother.
“Pramod Mahajan’s condition is still critical,” said Anupam Verma, spokesperson of the P.D. Hinduja Hospital, where the 56-year-old politician was rushed Saturday after Pravin Mahajan shot at him.
“Overnight there has been no improvement. In a sense, status quo has been there for the last 72 hours. His condition is being monitored on an hourly basis,” Verma told mediapersons outside the hospital here.
Mahajan continued to be on ventilator in the ICU. He has also been put on dialysis after his kidney function deteriorated Sunday.
Excess fluid from the politician’s kidneys was drained out and the bleeding in his liver stopped after an emergency operation Sunday. He had also shown some signs of consciousness Sunday.
Mohammad Rela, a liver and pancreas specialist from London, has already examined him. Rela is in the city on the request of the Mahajan family.
Members of the family said Monday said there was an ‘improvement’ in the condition of the BJP leader and that they were hopeful he would successfully fight the grim battle for life.
His son Rahul thanked all the people for praying for his recovery. ‘The doctors are doing a great job. The prayers of so many people across the country will also definitely help.’ Meanwhile, the interrogation of Pravin Mahajan, who has been remanded in police custody till Saturday by a local court, continued Tuesday to establish a motive for the bizarre shootout that sent shockwaves throughout the country.
Police sources say Pravin Mahajan, a builder in neighboring Thane district, had made up his mind to kill his brother three weeks ago. He actively began tracking his elder brother’s whereabouts 15 days ago.
In his statement to the police after surrendering Saturday, Pravin Mahajan, 46, had said he was not treated well by his ‘high-profile’ brother. The accused said he was often humiliated by Pramod Mahajan.
Pravin Mahajan’s lawyer maintains his client was suffering from some mental disorder for the last few months and that relations between the two brothers had been cordial.
Pramod Mahajan is among BJP’s front-ranking leaders and a party general secretary. In the BJP and outside, the former union minister is considered a master strategist and known to enjoy close ties with leaders of almost all parties.
