Mukul Roy has dementia, Parkinson's disease: Doctors

Bengal's maverick politician Mukul Roy, who has flip-flopped between the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party over the last few years has been suffering from Parkinson's disease and dementia and last month underwent surgery for a neurological disorder, according to doctors treating him.

Though he has physically improved, his doctors remained unsure of his mental functioning.

Roy underwent a surgery for hydrocephalus, a condition in which fluid accumulates in the brain, which may cause brain damage.

"Mr Roy's (physical) health has improved a lot compared to what it was a month ago. He is physically fit to travel, but how much he has regained his mental functioning is yet to be ascertained -- dementia can never be totally reversed and there is always a chance it may get worse with age," eminent Neurosurgeon Dr S N Singh, who has been treating the politician for quite some time, told PTI.

Dementia is a condition in which a person may lose cognitive functioning, which includes thinking, remembering, and reasoning, to an extent.

Parkinson's disease on the other hand is a neurological disorder which affects the nervous system.

Roy's son Subhrangshu, who also returned to the TMC along with his father in 2021, told PTI telephonically, "Baba has recovered well from several health issues."

"He is better now. But his dementia has deteriorated vastly and hence he is making all kinds of statements," the junior Roy told PTI.

On Monday evening, Subhrangshu had lodged two first information reports (FIRs) alleging that his father was 'untraceable' hours before Roy was spotted in New Delhi where he claimed he had travelled there 'as a Delhi MP and MLA'.

Speaking to a Bengali news channel, Roy claimed that he was 'never a MLA and has always been a member of the Parliament'.

He also said he has to fight the Communist Party of India-Marxist and then went on to say that there is a need to fight the CPI-M, the Congress and the TMC.