By IANS
New Delhi : Fate has made former prime ministers Vishwanath Pratap Singh and his successor and rival Chandra Shekhar come together – in the Apollo Hospital here where both are being treated.
While Singh is on dialysis, Chandra Shekhar is suffering from multiple myloma, a cancer of the plasma.
"They are staying next door to each other for security reasons. Both are former prime ministers and therefore they have to be given the maximum security," a hospital official told IANS.
Two separate teams of special doctors were attending on the two leaders to "ensure that they get the best possible treatment", the official said.
Singh became prime minister in the United Front government in 1989 defeating the Congress led by late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Ironically, "Young Turk" Chandra Shekhar became prime minister in November 1990 after Singh was defeated in a confidence vote in the Lok Sabha following the withdrawal of support by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Chandra Shekhar was prime minister for four months and was replaced by P.V. Narasimha Rao who led the Congress to power in 1991.
The two leaders had one common visitor last week, Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, who is likely to be the presidential candidate of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).