SEOUL: Rumours about failing health condition of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has resurfaced as diplomat Chang Song-min has claimed that Kim is in a coma and that’s why his sister Kim Yo-jong has been given powers.

“I assess him to be in a coma, but his life has not ended. A complete succession structure has not been formed, so Kim Yo-jong is being brought to the fore,” Chang said in an interview according to a report by South Korean media.

Repeating his earlier claims, where he has said that Kim Jon Un is bedridden and that photos of Kim released by the North Korean media in recent months were fake. Chang has claimed to have gotten the information from a source in China.

Earlier, South Korea`s intelligence agency had claimed that Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, is serving as his "de facto second-in-command" but has not necessarily been designated his successor, a South Korean lawmaker said on Thursday.

Ha Tae-keung, an opposition party lawmaker on parliament`s intelligence committee, told reporters that Kim was helping to run the regime with mandated authority from her brother.

Meanwhile, speculations have been rife about Kim Jong-un's health with rumours suggesting his death which links his fewer public appearances.

According to some rumours, a failed heart surgery has either left the North Korean leader possibly dead or bedridden.