Soren not fit to attend court: Hospital

The former minister had complained of severe heartache on Tuesday and cannot attend court the next three days.

Disgraced former coal minister Shibu Soren, charged with murder, is not well and cannot attend court the next three days, said a hospital where he was admitted three days ago following chest pain.

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"He is not well. I do not think that he would be able to attend court proceedings for the next three days," said Shakti Gupta, the medical superintendent at the All Indian Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

According to Gupta, six heart specialists will carry out tests on Soren, who was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday, hours after a court convicted him and four others for the 1994 murder of his secretary Shashi Nath Jha.

"We have conducted a number of tests and the decision to discharge him will not be taken till we get all the reports," he said.

Gupta said the former minister had complained of severe heartache on Tuesday and was brought to AIIMS around 11 pm.

"We shifted him to the coronary care unit because we thought he needed round-the-clock monitoring," the official said.

Soren, who was taken into custody soon after the court pronounced its verdict, has been held guilty of criminal conspiracy, murder and abduction.

After the ruling, Soren quit the cabinet. The former minister heads the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, a member of India's ruling coalition.