An application has been filed seeking to withdraw the case against four people, including the husband and in-laws of physician Nafisa Tabassum Dhipra, over her death in Dhaka's Dhanmondi.
The application was submitted on Wednesday to the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Jewel Rana by the complainant, Mashiur Rahman Shah, who identified himself as Dhipra's relative.
Speaking on Thursday, complainant's lawyer Md Farhad Hossain Niyon said the complainant had applied to withdraw the case and that it was his personal decision.
"When an application for withdrawal is filed, it is usually heard on the scheduled date. The hearing in this case has been fixed for August 18," he said.
Asked about the reason behind the move, Mashiur Rahman told reporters: "No comments. Please wait. You will know on August 18."
On June 16, Mashiur filed the case accusing Dhipra's husband, Dr Rahmat Rashid, her father-in-law Dr Mohammad Abdur Rashid, head of the Cardiac Department at BIRDEM General Hospital, her mother-in-law Siddika Sultana, Shimu Naser, editor of the satire website Yarki, and several unnamed others.
The case alleged death by negligence, torture and concealment of evidence through burial without a post-mortem examination.
The court subsequently directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to investigate the allegations.
According to the complaint, Dhipra married her classmate Dr Rahmat Rashid after a romantic relationship, and the couple has a two-year-old son.
It alleged that she had been subjected to physical and mental abuse by her husband's family since the marriage, causing her to suffer from severe depression. Following childbirth, she was also reportedly suffering from postpartum depression, high blood pressure and diabetes.
The complaint further alleged that despite being physicians, the accused failed to ensure her proper treatment and care and obstructed her preparation for the FCPS examination.
It also said that before her death, Dhipra had posted about domestic abuse in the Facebook group Female Doctors in Bangladesh.
The complaint claimed that Dhipra was locked inside a room for three consecutive days from June 2 without food and was prevented from seeing her two-year-old son.
On June 4, after being informed, her mother went to an apartment at Bashati Green Residence in Dhanmondi and found her daughter confined inside. After the door was opened, Dhipra embraced her mother and said: "Mother, I want to eat rice."
She then collapsed on the floor, the complaint said.
It further alleged that instead of taking her immediately to the nearest hospital, there was a delay in providing treatment, and she died on the way to BIRDEM General Hospital.
The case also alleged that after her death, efforts were made to suppress the incident by using influence to obtain a death certificate without conducting a post-mortem examination before arranging her burial.
