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Atal ISN'T ill!

There are hundreds of things on which the Vajpayee government can be criticised. But the prime minister's health is not one of those.

Unfortunately, that is all what the media seems to be interested these days.

Health is something that's not in one's hand. Those who are criticising the prime minister for his alleged ill health do not know what will be their status tomorrow. Unless somebody's health reaches a stage where s/he is not able to perform prescribed duties, it should not be made an issue.

For instance, Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma had very poor health, but he fulfilled his duties. Similarly, the great leader of China, Dengxiao Peng, was very ill, but nobody questioned his performance. Unless somebody becomes a vegetable, he should not be the subject of such criticism.

Compared to the above-mentioned people, Vajpayee's health appears to be very sound. Still, a campaign is on against it. The PMO is issuing denials every day -- yet, Vajpayee is 'a patient of cancer'! It is also being said that some of his own party colleagues are behind this campaign. That may be true, or it mayn't -- but I refuse to believe that such a campaign has the approval of L K Advani, as being spread in media circles.

Today Vajpayee is just not another individual. He is the prime minister. The way his 'ill' health is being highlighted is bringing a bad name to India internationally. It may be an effort to create an impression of instability in the country. On August 15, Vajpayee's 'fall' was the main news instead of his speech.

According to the official version, it was not a muscle-pull in the lower back, but numbness in one of his feet that made the PM uncomfortable after addressing the nation from the Red Fort. The numbness was very temporary and he was all right after some time. Initially doctors thought it was muscle-pull, but later Vajpayee himself told about the numbness.

People close to him say that that day Vajpayee was very tense as he was going to achieve his lifetime ambition of hoisting the Indian flag from the Red Fort. He was so careful about the event that he refused to speak extempore but decided to read a written speech -- a strange exercise for him. Because of the tenseness, he forgot to wear shoes when he got out of his car. His socks had got wet at Rajghat. His private secretary Shakti Sinha provided him another pair. He was in the process of changing when the motorcade arrived at Red Fort and he hurriedly got down without shoes.

Sources close to Vajpayee's family reveal that there is nothing wrong with his health. Everybody knows that one of his kidneys was removed in 1985. He himself had written about it in Dharmyug magazine, with a long poem describing his fight with death. He used to go for check-ups at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. As one of his favourite doctors has now shifted to the Bharatiya Hospital, he has now started going there. All tests have been done on him, and there is no sign of cancer.

He is working more than 14 hours a day. He gets up at 0600 hours and, after reading the newspapers, talks to important officials of the party and government on the telephone. He also goes through routine intelligence reports. By 0930 hours, he is ready for regular appointments. At 1400 hours, he returns home for lunch and a nap, and is back in office by 1530 hours. After that, he goes to South Block. Vajpayee retires for the night at 2300 hours, after reading a little.

Now, tell me, can a man, who is up and about on his feet from 0600 hours to 2300 hours -- can such a man be chronically ill?

Rajiv Shukla