The High Court yesterday issued a rule asking the government as to why a criminal case should not be initiated against the authorities of Japan Bangladesh Friendship Hospital for keeping a toddler’s lifeless body on life support and other irregularities.
The court also wanted to know why an order should not be given to compensate the family members of the 16-month-old baby girl, Sumaiya Sabah.
Health secretary, director general of the health department, director general of the drug administration and the hospital’s managing director were asked to respond to the rule within 10 days.
The bench of Justice Moazzem Hossain and Justice Bodruzzaman issued the suo-moto rule after two lawyers brought the matter to the court’s notice. Of the respondents, the drug administration DG and the hospital’s MD were asked to appear before the court on February 22, one of the lawyers Toufiq Inam told the Dhaka Tribune.
The hospital’s authorities were fined Tk11.5 lakh for various irregularities during a sudden drive by Executive Magistrate Md Helal Uddin on Wednesday. At one stage of the operation, the mobile court found the mother of the baby girl waiting outside the ICU.
She alleged that the hospital authorities were not giving any clear information regarding the health condition of her daughter, and that they took her signature on four papers which did not contain any details of the toddler’s health.
Based on her allegation, the team forcefully entered the ICU and found the baby already dead.
The victim’s family said that Sumaiya was admitted to the hospital on Monday with breathing problems. She was immediately taken to the ICU, where she remained away from her family until she died. The staff had also asked her relatives several times to bring medicine and saline for her.