Readable autopsy report: HC wants to know the progress

The High Court today wanted to know what steps have been taken to ensure that doctors concerned provide post-mortem reports in readable handwriting and add a typed copy with a report.

The director general of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) was ordered to submit before this court in 15 days a progress report on implementation of an earlier HC directive on this issue.

On November 20, 2019, the HC ordered the doctors concerned to ensure clear handwriting in the postmortem reports of killing incidents and add a typed copy. It also asked the health secretary, DG of DGHS and all civil surgeons to take necessary steps to this effect.

The HC bench of Justice Md Badruzzaman and Justice SM Masud Hossain Dolon issued the order on a suo motu (voluntary) move during the hearing of a bail petition filed by one Naiem, an accused in a murder case in Rajshahi.

During the proceedings, the HC judges found that the hand writings of the autopsy report done by Rajshahi Medical College in connection with the murder case was very unclear and then issued the order, Naiem's lawyer Tanoy Kumar Saha told The Daily Star.

The HC, however, granted an ad-interim bail to Naiem for six months in the case on relevant grounds, and there is no legal bar for him to get released from jail, he added.