HC seeks opinion of four amici curae
The High Court yesterday sought expert opinions from four amici curiae (friends of court) on the alleged refusal of three hospitals in Dhaka to provide treatment to newborn twin babies and their death on November 2, and on the explanations given by the hospitals on the issue.
The amici curiae are Supreme Court lawyers ZI Khan Panna, Manzill Murshid and Dr Shahdeen Malik, and the chief pediatric specialist of Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
The HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Ahmed Sohel asked for their expert opinions on this issue before this court on January 18 next year.
The bench passed the order after lawyers concerned of three hospitals -- Bangladesh Islami Bank Hospital, Dhaka Shishu Hospital and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) -- submitted their explanations to the court about their roles regarding treatment of the newborn twin babies.
Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik, who went through the explanations submitted to the HC on behalf of the three hospitals, told The Daily Star that Director of Dhaka Shishu Hospital Dr Syed Shafi Ahmed, Deputy Director Dr Prabir Kumar Sarker and peon Md Shamsul Haque have made contradictory statements in their explanations.
On November 2, the HC bench in a suo moto (voluntary) move sought explanations from authorities concerned of the three hospitals about the death of newborn twins, as the babies were refused treatment there, after Abdul Kalam Azad, father of the babies, brought the bodies of the babies to the court premises and placed the issue before the bench for necessary order.
Azad had gone to Islami Bank Hospital on a CNG-run auto-rickshaw with his pregnant wife Sayera Khatun on that day. She gave birth to the twins on her way to the hospital. Islami Bank Hospital refused to admit the babies saying they were not equipped to provide treatment to newborns.
They advised Abdul Kalam to admit them to Dhaka Shishu Hospital.
Dhaka Shishu Hospital authorities, however, informed Abdul Kalam that he had to pay Tk 5,000 for treatment of each baby per day, which he could not afford.
Abdul Kalam reached out to a HC judge over the matter, who advised that the newborns be taken to BSMMU, where its director would meet them, DAG Amin Uddin said.
Abdul Kalam went to BSMMU with the twins on an ambulance at around 2:00pm.
Once there, the BSMMU authorities informed him that the director had gone home after conducting an operation.
At a stage, a doctor of BSMMU visited the newborn babies in the ambulance and declared them dead, the DAG said.
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