Expelled ADMK leader VK Sasikala, who was the closest aide of late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, has been battling COVID-19 viral infection in Victoria Hospital, days ahead of the end of her prison sentence. Sasikala has tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Thursday and she has been getting treated in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). 

On Friday, the hospital issued a bulletin concerning her health condition in which it has asserted that Sasikala is doing stable. The hospital said, "With the diagnosis of COVID-19, severe pneumonia with Type II diabetes, hypertension, and hypothyroidism, the patient is being treated with standard COVID-19 protocol at the Trauma Care Center of Victoria Hospital". 

The hospital stated that Sasikala is maintaining oxygen saturation of 98 percent with five liters of oxygen through a Non-rebreather mask. Sasikala's condition is stable and comfortable, and she is conscious and she is on the path of recovery with reducing COVID-19 viral infection. Sasikala has been lodged in Parappana Agrahara Jail in Bengaluru since February 2017 and she was all set to get released on January 27. However, on Wednesday, she had developed discomforts and complained of breathing difficulty.

When she was initially treated at the hospital in the prison complex, she was then taken to Bowring Hospital for treatment. She was brought to Bowring Hospital on Wednesday with fever, breathing difficulty, and low oxygen saturation level. She was immediately given oxygen support and was moved to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). With the positive symptoms, Sasikala had tested for the COVID-19 pandemic. 

While two tests at the Bowring Hospital returned negative for the viral infection, it also warranted that she must undergo a CT scan as she was diagnosed with the Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI). Due to the non-functioning of scanning equipment, her family members had expressed disappointment and asked Bowring Hospital to shift her to a private hospital for further treatments. 

On Thursday afternoon, Sasikala has got discharged from Bowring Hospital and got admitted to Victoria Hospital at around 2.30 pm and the test on her swab samples had confirmed that she had contracted the COVID-19 viral infection. It was the third COVID-19 test that she had gone through and she was tested positive for COVID-19 at around 9.30 pm on Thursday, with the diagnosis of COVID-19 severe pneumonia with Type 2 Diabetes, Hypertension, Hypothyroidism. 

Sasikala's family members have been camped in the hospital and on Thursday, the hospital has permitted two of her relatives - Sivakumar and Venkatesh, who are also doctors, to visit her. Her nephew and AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran has also been staying in Bangalore and monitoring her health. While addressing the media on Friday, the Superintendent of Victoria Hospital said that Sasikala has been doing stable and responding well to the treatments and the hospital said that Sasikala is stable, conscious, and not on the ventilator support.