Hasina 'discovered' death from starvation, relief minister says

The government has provided enough food grains under vulnerable group feeding (VGF) programme and would continue to do so till the situation eases, he said addressing a public meeting at Kaligang Bazar under West Chatnai in Dimla upazila Thursday night.

Among others State Minister for Education ANM Ehsanul Haq Milon, district BNP president Shahrin Islam Tuhin spoke at the meeting.

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

The minister said Awami League (AL) chief Sheikh Hasina was trying to tarnish the image of the government by "discovering a so-called death from starvation".

Before the meeting, the minister and the state minister drove from Saidbur airport to the house of late Chhayan Ali, at Fulchari village under East Chatnai union in Dimla upazila.

Sheikh Hasina at a public meeting at Chatnai colony high school ground on November 17 said that Chhayan Ali, 50, died from starvation.

The minister talked to Chhayan Ali's widow Noor Nahar Begum, 45, in presence of journalists and villagers.

In reply to the minister's quarry about the cause of her husband's death, she said her husband had intestinal pain for long.

He was attacked with diarrhoea and was admitted to Dimla upazila health complex on November 4. After his recovery from diarrhoea, his intestinal pain became acute.

He went to the hospital again. Doctors then advised Chhayan Ali to go to Rangpur Medical College Hospital for better treatment and released him on November 8.

Noor Nahar said she was preparing to take him to Rangpur but he died on November 10.

However, sideway standing Chhayan Ali's sister told the minister that her brother died from starvation. Noor Nahar alleged to the minister that they were very poor and passed days half-fed, but the local Union Parishad member did not give her rice under VGF programme.

When the minister asked local UP member Emdadul Haq, he said Chhayan Ali's family was given 20 kgs of rice twice under VGF programme.

The minister promised Chhayen Ali's family a cow, a tin-shed house and Tk 10,000.

The minister and the state minister then visited the house of Md Nizamuddin, whose 14-year-old son Kazol was killed by Sheikh Hasina's motorcade on November 17.

Kazol was a student of VIII at Kaliganj Junior High School.

They expressed sympathy with Kazol's father, a doctor and president of West Chatnai union Awami League.

State Minister Milon told Nijamuddin that every citizen has the right to take lawful action against such incidents and that police would held him if he wanted to file a case for the death of his son. Nijamuddin kept mum.