Doctors confirm torture on Prothom Alo journo

A medical board yesterday confirmed physical torture on ABM Mizanur Rahman, Bauphal correspondent of the Bangla daily Prothom Alo.

The 4-member board headed by Dr Monirul Islam examined Mizanur at Patuakhali General Hospital for around two hours after police brought him there at 10:00am.

"We found muscle injuries and torture marks on his body … We fear his kidney got affected too as he was physically tortured. It also might have affected his brain as he had lost conciseness at one a stage of torture," Monirul told the press after examining Mizanur.

"Considering all these, we recommended city scan, x-ray and blood tests for him," he said, adding that the extent of the damages could be determined after getting the test reports.

The board was formed following an order by District and Sessions Judge Bimal Chandra Sikder of Patuakhali on Tuesday. The medical examination report will be submitted to the court on March 31.

Police arrested Mizanur from Kalaiya Bazar area around 8:00pm on March 17 on charge of assaulting Halim, assistant sub-inspector of Bauphal Police Station. Halim had filed the case the same day.

Talking to local journalists at the court on March 22, Mizanur alleged that he was tortured, both physically and mentally, in the police custody till he lost consciousness.

Police then took him to Bauphal Upazila Health Complex that night. But they brought him back to the police station without any treatment, as some local journalists were present at the hospital, he said.

The following day, police produced Mizanur before the judicial magistrate's court that sent him to jail.