Photo: Collected
A pacemaker has been implanted in the chest of former Prime Minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chief Begum Khaleda Zia after her physical condition deteriorated again. The procedure began at 4 pm on Sunday and concluded around 7 pm.
The family and BNP have requested prayers from people across the country for Khaleda Zia, who is in critical condition. Prayer gatherings in mosques and temples in districts and cities throughout the country, including Dhaka, have been announced.
Meanwhile, worried party leaders and activists are expressing their emotions on social media and rushing to the hospital.
Some are blaming the government for this situation, while others hold the party high command's weakness, incompetence, and failure responsible. She has been confined to one room for nearly five and a half years since being sentenced. According to doctors, normal medication couldn't be administered after she developed liver cirrhosis. Treating one condition leads to complications in another. The medical team has informed the family that without advanced liver treatment abroad, it is impossible to return her to normal life.
Most recently, on Saturday night around 3:30 am, Khaleda Zia suddenly fell ill at her residence 'Firoza' in Gulshan, and she was admitted to the CCU of Evercare Hospital. Her treatment began under the supervision of a medical board at the hospital. The 79-year-old former prime minister has long been suffering from various ailments, including liver cirrhosis, arthritis, diabetes, and problems with her kidneys, lungs, heart, and eyes.
Khaleda Zia is under the care of a medical board led by Professor Shahabuddin Talukder, a heart specialist. The medical board members held several meetings on Saturday and Sunday and decided to implant a pacemaker. Dr. Zubaida Rahman, the wife of Khaleda Zia's elder son Tarique Rahman, from London, and several specialist doctors from the USA and Australia were virtually present at these medical board meetings.
Regarding this, Khaleda Zia's personal physician, Professor AZM Zahid Hossain, informed the media on Sunday afternoon that the specialist medical team had completed the implantation of a pacemaker in BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's chest. This process started at 4 pm and ended by 7 pm. He said, “Madam (Khaleda Zia) had heart problems before. There was a block in the heart, and a stent was also implanted. After reviewing everything, the medical board decided to implant a pacemaker in Madam's chest. Madam's family and BNP have asked for prayers from the countrymen.”
Meanwhile, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir expressed sorrow that BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia is on her deathbed due to the lack of necessary advanced treatment abroad. He said, “It is our misfortune that our leader Khaleda Zia is in a critical condition on her deathbed without receiving the necessary treatment abroad. The medical board at Evercare Hospital has been repeatedly saying that Madam's (Khaleda Zia's) treatment is not possible in Bangladesh. She needs treatment in a multidisciplinary hospital in an advanced country to address various physical problems.”
“Khaleda Zia's family, representatives of civil society, foreign missions, the European Union, and international organisations have repeatedly called on the government to allow Khaleda to be treated in specialised medical facilities abroad. But Sheikh Hasina, due to her personal political vendetta, has deprived Khaleda Zia of the opportunity for advanced treatment to kill her and remove her from politics,” he added.
After the deterioration of Khaleda Zia's physical condition, many, including the party's senior joint secretary general, Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, rushed to the hospital to inquire. Top leaders of the party have participated in prayers in mosques and temples.
Messenger/Fameema
