How is Jayalalithaa? Rumour abuzz on Twitter despite denials, health reports

The health of Tamil Nadu chief minister becomes talking point after her government refuses to show photographs of her recovery.

The health of Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa has been the subject of feverish speculation on social media for more than a week, sparking a storm of death rumours and fake photographs of her in intensive care.

People hold a portrait of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha as they pray for her wellbeing in front of a hospital where she was being treated in Chennai on October 5, 2016. (AFP)

The state government and her party, the AIADMK, have repeatedly quashed the rumours and the hospital she was admitted to on September 22, Apollo Hospital in Chennai, has issued repeated bulletins on her health.

But a shroud of secrecy surrounding her, silence on her ailment and a restriction on who can visit the chief minister have fuelled rumours and a political war-of-words. Her bitter rival and DMK patriarch, M Karunanidhi, even asked for a photo of her to be released, only to be rebuffed.

Here’s what the rumour mills churned out on Twitter:

The photo was later confirmed to be fake. But that didn’t stop the rumours from flying thick and fast.