Home food for P Chidambaram in Tihar

New Delhi : Former Union finance minister P Chidambaram will now be able to relish home-cooked food in Tihar Jail once daily as a Delhi court allowed his plea in this regard on Thursday after noting his medical condition.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Chidambaram, told the court that the 74-year-old Congress leader was suffering from multiple ailments, including dyslipidemia and irritable bowel disease.

Sibal told the court that there was a noticeable loss in Chidambaram's weight and his health was deteriorating in jail. There was an inflammation in his digestive tract and therefore, it was imperative for him to eat home-cooked food.

Responding to his plea, the superintendent of Tihar Jail submitted that the Delhi Prison Rules prohibited outside food for inmates and if Chidambaram was allowed to have home-cooked food, it would be discriminatory to other prisoners.

The jail official also told the court that an inmate was allowed to meet visitors only twice a week and if Chidambaram was allowed to have home food, it would require daily contact with visitors, which would not be conducive to his safety and security.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), however, said he had no objection to Chidambaram being provided with home-cooked food.