Over 100 prisoners continue to enjoy hospitality, some even for months and years, in various city hospitals using influence and money. Such illegal facilities of seeking hospitalization and extending their stay for months and often beyond, has turn into a common trend only for those prisoners who have money and power.
Usually prisoners are admitted to the jail hospitals when they fall sick or suffer any in-house injuries. However, in recent years, so-called VIPs or prisoners who have influence are ‘allowed’ such luxury. On recommendations of prison medical practitioners the individual ‘sick’ prisoners are allowed to seek treatment inside the prison. In order to enjoy a better environment and facilities the sick prisoners often seek court intervention to seek hospitalization in public hospitals outside the prisons.
In many cases, many of the prisoners are being admitted to different public hospitals although they are said to be not sick or requiring treatment any more. Despite the facts, they avail such redundant facilities through ‘buying’ prescriptions that advises longer stay and treatment.
However, the jail authorities denied the allegations as saying that they never allow prisoners with such unlawful facilities. The authorities claimed that they allow sick prisoners to get admitted to the hospitals as per the jail codes. According to jail official sources, there are over 87,000 prisoners at present in 13 central and 55 district jails across the country. Of them, a total of 106 prisoners are staying at different hospitals outside the jail premises for their treatment purposes.
The sources also said most of the 106 prisoners are top criminals serving various prison terms for different reasons. Of them, BNP Chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Destiny Group Managing Director Rafiqul Amin, Illegal Drugs businessman Amin Huda, former National Security Intelligence (NSI) Director General Wahidul Huq, Taiwan Ceramic Industries Chairman Khaja Shadat Ullah and Casino boss and former Jubo League leader Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat are staying at the prisons cell of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU.
Besides, convicts for Crimes Against Humanity, Delwar Hossain Sayeedi was undergoing treatment at BIRDEM Hospital while another convict Moulana Abdus Sobhan, militant leader Abu Saleh Zakaria, Abdul Karim, Kazi Monir, Abdus Salam, Parimal Das, Selim Miah, Dulal Chandra Sahar, Kalpana Akhter, Rubina Begum, Rajia Khatun and Shirin Akhter were undergoing treatment at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH).
