‘We’ve done all we can, Khaleda not getting the treatment she needs right now’: Medical Board

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia needs to be taken abroad for an urgent liver transplant, the medical board formed for her treatment at Evercare Hospital said on Monday (October 09, 2023).

“She (Khaleda Zia) could collapse anytime, as she has been suffering from several critical diseases, including liver cirrhosis, chief of the medical board, Dr Shahabuddin Talukder, said.

He made the remarks at a press conference at the Evercare Hospital.

Dr FM Siddique, a member of the medical board, said the BNP chairperson is not getting the treatment she needs at the moment for liver cirrhosis.

He said, “We’ve done all that we can. She needs to be taken abroad, to any advanced establishment, for necessary treatment.”

He said the BNP chief’s condition is worsening because of lack of “proper treatment.”

“As per the medical board’s unanimous decision, I want to covey to all concerned that there’s still time to treat her with transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) for liver transplant at any multi-disciplinary establishment,” the doctor said.

He said TIPS is necessary to stop water from being accumulated in her stomach and chest and internal bleeding.

Another board member voiced concern that high doses of antibiotics are not working on Khaleda due to their frequent use.

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, the 79-year-old former prime minister, has been undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka under the supervision of a 15-member medical board, led by specialist doctor, Professor Shahabuddin Talukder, since August 9.

She has been suffering from various ailments, including liver cirrhosis, arthritis, diabetes, kidney, lung, heart, and eye problems.

On September 5, Khaleda’s brother Shamim Iskandar submitted an application to the government, seeking her unconditional release and permission to take her abroad for treatment at an “advanced medical center” on an urgent basis to save her life.

However, the law ministry denied permission to take her abroad for better treatment, suggesting that she must first return to jail and then apply to the court to get permission in this regard.

Law Minister Anisul Huq said there is no chance to open the petition, which has already been disposed of as per Section 401 of the CrPC. “We gave the opinion that the petition disposed under Section 401 is a past and closed transaction. There is no other scope to open it,” he said.

However, some legal experts and pro-BNP lawyers think the government can still let her go overseas for treatment using its discretionary power.

On Octboer3, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir alleged that the incumbent “cowardly” government wants to “kill” Khaleda Zia without allowing her treatment abroad.

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, the government freed Khaleda Zia from jail for six months through an executive order by suspending her sentence on March 25, 2020, with the condition that she would stay at her Gulshan house and would not leave the country. Later, the government extended the tenure of suspension of Khaleda’s sentence for the eighth time.