04 November,2009 08:47 AM IST | | Chetan R
Besieged by non-stop TV news of rebel activity, Yeddy takes eight insulin shots in a day as stress gets to him
The Reddy brothers' rebellion has begun to take a heavy toll on the health of Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, who is 66 years old.
The chief minister, who has hypertension, diabetes and cardiac problems, had to reportedly take insulin injections over eight times in a single day recently, what with the stress of dealing with the chaos in the state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
As TV news channels kept flashing how the powerful Reddy brothers of Bellary and their followers in the Legislative Assembly were bent on bringing about his downfall, Yediyurappa is said to have begun to crack.
The actions of Karunakara and Janardhana Reddy, the Bellary mining barons with a string of grouses against the chief minister, sent his blood pressure and sugar levels soaring, said people close to Yediyurappa.
"He was very tense, especially when things went badly wrong with MLAs (members of the Legislative Assembly) flying away from Bangalore," said a source.
The Reddys have taken the MLAs who are on their side away from Bangalore to keep the flock together.
Media circus
"The chief minister's stress-induced hypertension became so bad one day last week that he struggled hard to come back to normalcy," added the source.
The rebellion against Yediyurappa by the Reddys and others like Sriramulu has become fodder for TV news channels, local as well as national.
The Reddys are upset over things such as a proposal to levy tax on trucks ferrying iron ore in Bellary and the transfer of bureaucrats considered close to them.
But the biggest grouse most BJP MLAs have is the chief minister's refusal to ask for the resignation of cabinet minister and close friend Shobha Karandlaje, who the rebels complain interferes with the working of their departments.
Now, any development connected with the chaos in the ruling party is repeatedly aired on Kannada news channels throughout the day.
Failure of talks
Yediyurappa was so disturbed by the TV coverage that doctors gave him insulin over eight times in a single day, a rare thing to do, said the sources.
"Hearing and seeing on TV the protests against him by MLAs who were not in Bangalore severely disturbed him.
The failure of talks to broker peace that were initiated by the central leadership in Bangalore added to it," said a source. "His sugar levels increased after he grew restless upon watching the news channels."
The chief minister also increased the intake of pills to check his high blood pressure, said sources.
Silent recovery
Also a cardiac patient, Yediyurappa was advised by doctors to keep himself calm and keep checking on his sugar levels and blood pressure, as otherwise it may have proved hazardous, said the sources.
"On doctors' advice, he slipped into silence a day after he was diagnosed with high sugar levels," said a source. "He was also advised to take rest. He is on pills and insulin."
Leading diabetologists would not put a figure to it, but said that if insulin was injected over eight times in a day it indicated Yediyurappa's sugar levels had gone worryingly high.
"Insulin is given based on sugar levels," said Dr.Raja Ponnambalam, a leading diabetologist. "Insulin is even given once every hour if conditions worsen. Giving insulin eight times a day is an indicator of very high sugar level."
