Food for thought: Separatist leader Shabir Shah seeks special fat-free diet in Tihar Jail

He may be behind bars on money laundering charges, but his tantrums on food sound no less than decrees of "shahs" from days of royalty.

Separatist leader Shabir Shah has sought a special diet during his stay at Delhi's Tihar Jail in view of the multiple medical conditions he has been living with for several years. His regimen includes fat-free food with minimal salt and sugar.

Shah is facing trial in a decade-old money laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate which is also probing his alleged involvement in terror funding. The arrest was made in connection with an August 2005 case in which Delhi Police's special cell had nabbed Mohammad Aslam Wani, claiming that Rs 63 lakh was recovered from the alleged hawala dealer, out of which Rs 52 lakh was allegedly meant to be delivered to Shah. The agency had earlier issued several summons to Shah in the case, the prosecution had said, adding that Wani had claimed that he had given Rs 2.25 crore to the Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party founder.

Authorities suspect Shah and other separatist leaders took money from Pakistan through hawala to pay people to throw stones during protests as well as fuel unrest and terrorism in the Kashmir Valley.

Shah filed an application through his advocate MS Khan who told court that the 62-year-old is suffering from hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia (abnormal amount of lipids in blood), atypical chest pain, cervical spondylosis (neck arthritis), lumbar spondylosis (bony overgrowths), osteoarthritis, sudden loss of consciousness, etc. He requires a special diet plan as prescribed by the doctors in Jammu and Kashmir as well as New Delhi, the request said.

According to the prescription, his meal should comprise tea without sugar, food not cooked in more than two tablespoons of oil, egg whites, green salad (which includes cucumber and turnip), three oranges a day, high-protein diet in low quantity like chicken and mutton, milk and fat-free curd. Doctors have advised him to eat every two-three hours, the court was told.

Speaking to Mail Today, the separatist leader's wife Bilqees Shah said she has also written to the jail authorities as well as the government and listed his "unavoidable" medical needs, which are being "ignored" in the central jail.

"My husband's health is worsening as days pass. He has suddenly lost a lot of weight. He is being made to eat food that is being cooked in the jail mess which is extremely harmful for him," she said. In the application, Shah also claimed that from the list of medicines prescribed by the doctors, which he has been consuming for the last six years, not a single drug is available or provided to him, till date. "Tihar jail officials are acting indifferently for reasons best known to them," his counsel said.

The separatist leader also told court that the jail authorities did not have adequate medical facilities required to treat him and sought care at AIIMS. The court on Friday allowed his treatment at GB Pant Hospital.

Shah has also expressed concerns over his security in jail as well as the court lock- up. He has requested the court to shift him to the high-risk ward as he sees a threat to his life. His counsel MS Khan said, "There have been a few incidents in the jail as well as lock-up where people tried to rough him up and even labelled him a terrorist and anti-national."

In August, the court had allowed the Enforcement Directorate the custody of Shah after the agency alleged that he was "ruining" the country by using money to fund terror. It issued a non-bailable warrant against him after he did not show up despite multiple summons from ED.

WATCH: Jammu and Kashmir Police arrests separatist leader Shabir Shah on money laundering charges