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| India PM undergoes heart surgery | India PM undergoes heart surgery |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Doctors have begun heart bypass surgery on Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after he was admitted to hospital in Delhi, Indian media report. | Doctors have begun heart bypass surgery on Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after he was admitted to hospital in Delhi, Indian media report. |
| A team of six to eight surgeons was expected to operate on the 76-year-old leader, after two blockages were found in his arteries, officials said. | A team of six to eight surgeons was expected to operate on the 76-year-old leader, after two blockages were found in his arteries, officials said. |
| Mr Singh previously had bypass surgery in 1990 and an angioplasty in 2004. | Mr Singh previously had bypass surgery in 1990 and an angioplasty in 2004. |
| The ruling Congress Party says he will still lead the party in the forthcoming general election which is due by May. | The ruling Congress Party says he will still lead the party in the forthcoming general election which is due by May. |
| Mr Singh underwent tests earlier this week after he complained of chest pains. | Mr Singh underwent tests earlier this week after he complained of chest pains. |
| He will have "coronary artery bypass graft surgery" performed by doctors from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India's top state-run hospital, and the Asian Heart Institute in Mumbai. | He will have "coronary artery bypass graft surgery" performed by doctors from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India's top state-run hospital, and the Asian Heart Institute in Mumbai. |
| Doctors say that there is "very little risk" associated with Mr Singh's surgery and that the prime minister should be fit to resume normal duties in three to four weeks. | Doctors say that there is "very little risk" associated with Mr Singh's surgery and that the prime minister should be fit to resume normal duties in three to four weeks. |
| Succession speculation | Succession speculation |
| But the BBC's Jill McGivering says this is not a good time for the prime minister to be removed from the political fray, given the tense relations with Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai attacks. Will Rahul Gandhi emerge as a successor to Mr Singh? | But the BBC's Jill McGivering says this is not a good time for the prime minister to be removed from the political fray, given the tense relations with Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai attacks. Will Rahul Gandhi emerge as a successor to Mr Singh? |
| Congress has so far dismissed concerns that Mr Singh's health would interfere with its current election campaign. | Congress has so far dismissed concerns that Mr Singh's health would interfere with its current election campaign. |
| But there has been widespread speculation that party chief Sonia Gandhi has been lining up her son, Rahul Gandhi, heir to India's powerful Gandhi dynasty, as the country's next prime minister. | But there has been widespread speculation that party chief Sonia Gandhi has been lining up her son, Rahul Gandhi, heir to India's powerful Gandhi dynasty, as the country's next prime minister. |
| Mr Singh has largely been in good health since he was sworn in as prime minister in May 2004, but he recently underwent prostate surgery and has also had cataract treatment. | Mr Singh has largely been in good health since he was sworn in as prime minister in May 2004, but he recently underwent prostate surgery and has also had cataract treatment. |
| Mr Singh, who studied economics at Cambridge and Oxford, became India's finance minister in 1991 when the country was plunging into bankruptcy, and is widely regarded as the architect of the country's economic reform programme. | Mr Singh, who studied economics at Cambridge and Oxford, became India's finance minister in 1991 when the country was plunging into bankruptcy, and is widely regarded as the architect of the country's economic reform programme. |
| The quietly spoken economist-politician is also seen as the cleanest politician in India, a subject dear to voters' hearts. | The quietly spoken economist-politician is also seen as the cleanest politician in India, a subject dear to voters' hearts. |
| Government officials said that Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee will take charge of cabinet meetings during the prime minister's absence. | Government officials said that Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee will take charge of cabinet meetings during the prime minister's absence. |