Shabana Azmi diagnosed with swine flu, misses protest after doctors advise complete bed rest

Mumbai, July 24 (AHN) Veteran actress and activist Shabana Azmi has contracted swine flu and has been advised complete bed rest by doctors.

The actress, who was apparently all set to participate in protests, has been advised complete bed rest by the doctors.

According to her team, the 74-year-old actress has contracted swine flu and is running a high fever of 102 degrees.

A statement from her team read, "Shabana ji was meant to go to the protest today but she has contracted swine flu with 102 fever and has been advised rest by the doctor."

Over the past few days, Shabana had been actively participating in the protests in Jantar Mantar at Delhi. She was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with protestors and using her social media platforms to share updates and developments from the ground.

The actress had posted many photographs and videos from the protest venue, and also lent her voice to the movement.

In one post, Shabana wrote, “Alan e Haq mein khatra e daar o rasan tto hai lekin sawaal ye hai ke daar o rasan ke baad ? Kaifi Azmi .

Declaring the truth invites the threat of the scaffold and the rope. Yet the real question is: what lies beyond the scaffold and the rope?”

The couplet reflects on the cost of speaking the truth. It acknowledges that standing for truth may lead to persecution or even death (“the gallows and the noose”), but then asks a deeper question: What happens after that? Depending on interpretation, it can suggest that truth outlives oppression, that martyrdom is not the end, or that those who wield punishment cannot ultimately silence the truth.”

In the second post, she wrote, ‘Climbing up with the help of young colleagues to the protest site at #Jantar Mantar to demand reforms within our educational system and an overhaul of the entire system. Allocate 6 percent of GDP to education, public health and women’s empowerment to measure the success of our country.”

During one of the protest gatherings, Shabana also fell ill and was seen being escorted to an emergency medical centre after her health deteriorated.

Despite feeling unwell, she continued to show her support for the cause.

–AHN

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