Obaidul Qader flies to India for treatment
Ailing Awami League (AL) Joint General Secretary Obaidul Qader left Dhaka for New Delhi yesterday morning for better medical treatment.
He had been barred from leaving the country Saturday.
He left on a Jet Airways flight at 9:25am and is expected to be admitted to Apollo Hospital. He may stay in the Indian capital for several months.
Qader, also a former deputy minister, was arrested at the city's Khilgaon on March 9, 2007. He was later accused in five cases including corruption cases. He received bail in all the cases on September 5.
His lawyer AKM Amin Uddin said Qader left the country after getting clearance from the government.
"Immigration and intelligence officials obstructed him at the airport Saturday saying higher authorities placed restrictions on his leaving," the lawyer said in a press release.
The AL leader was forced to return to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) hospital after failing to board his flight Saturday.
Amin Uddin said they had applied to the home ministry on September 17 seeking permission to send Qader abroad for treatment. "We were verbally informed by the ministry that he could go abroad," the lawyer had said.
Qader has been suffering from a number of serious ailments including a neurological disease that causes muscle damage and weakening.
He was released on bail from BSMMU on September 5 where he remained for treatment since his admission on July 22 this year.
AL Publicity Secretary Asaduzzaman Noor, Md Shahjahan, AKM Amin Uddin Hanif, Abdul Kader Mirza and Moni Chowdhury bid him farewell at the airport.
Party official Tareque Shams Himu is accompanying Qader.
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