Sudha Bharadwaj trying to use ill health to get bail, claims Byculla jail superintendent

‘She has no diarrhoea, no body ache; she is a big complainer’

Sudha Bharadwaj. File.

Rubbishing the claims of ill health by Sudha Bharadwaj, an accused in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case, Sadanand Gaikwad, superintendent of Byculla jail, on Friday told The Hindu : “Ms. Bharadwaj keeps complaining. She has no body ache, no diarrhoea. She resorts to these gimmicks to get bail.”

On April 29, Ms. Bharadwaj called her daughter Maaysha from the prison and said she had diarrhoea, fatigue, and had lost her appetite and sense of taste for the last three weeks.

Speaking to

The Hindu, Maaysha said, “My mother has not been feeling well since she got vaccinated around three weeks ago. She told me that she had even written to the superintendent of Byculla jail about her health. Her letter requested him to take her to JJ Hospital for a thorough body check-up but to no avail.”

However, Mr. Gaikwad said, “Ms. Bharadwaj is a big complainer. She keeps complaining about everything. Even when she was in Yerwada jail, she used to complain a lot.”

When asked about her health, Mr. Gaikwad said, “She has nothing: no diarrhoea, no fatigue. She is anyway over 60 years old. She is bound to have some aches and pains. She resorts to these gimmicks to get bail. She is educated to know her way through these things. I have been seeing her do this for a very long time.”

“Otherwise, you tell me, now-a-days with COVID-19 around even in jails if someone says they have body ache how can we take them lightly? We immediately get them tested, and Ms. Bharadwaj has tested negative for COVID-19. Just last week, we conducted RT-PCR tests for around 350 women and 225 men. She is known for saying these things, but nothing is true,” he added.