Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) minister Satyendar Jain who is currently lodged in Tihar jail over alleged money laundering, approached a CBI court on Monday demanding access to a ‘religious diet’. He demanded fruits and salads and said that he was not given ‘Jain food’.
Jain, in an application filed in the court stated that he was not given access to the temple and was not given ‘Jain food’. He said that he does not eat regular food without going to the temple. He said that he cannot have ‘grains or milk products’ without going to the temple. Jain also said in his application that he was not given a fruits and salad diet for the past two days.
Jain’s petition will be heard in the CBI court today.
The application further claimed that for the past six months, he has been surviving only on fruits, vegetables, seeds and dry fruits that he purchased from his own quota of ration available to inmates. He suffered a major fall that led to a spine injury, and was treated in LNJP Hospital.
But for the past few days the jail administration has stopped providing him basic food as per his religious beliefs, the application stated. It called stopping food items during religious fasting illegal and arbitrary.
The applicant is being starved by the jail authorities and not given sustenance or nutrition, mentioned the application. It also stated that Jain was due for a medical check-up but was not allowed by the jail authorities.
The application comes after videos of Jain receiving massages and meeting visitors in his prison cell emerged. BJP and Congress demanded his sacking and a probe into violation of jail rules. Following this, Jain sought contempt proceedings against the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for allegedly leaking CCTV footage of his prison cell to the media.
Jain was arrested in a money laundering case based on a CBI FIR lodged against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act. He is accused of having laundered money through four companies allegedly linked to him.
(With PTI inputs)
Also read: AAP minister Satyendar Jain gets massage in jail; BJP leaders tweet CCTV video
