BNP leader accused of razing health centre at dead of night

The Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur Section 1 was demolished under the cover of darkness in a midnight attack, with the organisation alleging that office equipment and a large quantity of vaccination supplies were looted during the incident.

Nasrin Akhtar, Executive Director of Radda MCH, has lodged a case with Shah Ali Police Station, accusing local BNP leader Hanif Mia and 200 to 250 unidentified people in connection with the incident.

According to the case and Radda’s account, the entire facility, comprising one concrete building and three semi-concrete structures, was brought down with heavy machinery around midnight on Friday. Before leaving the site, the attackers allegedly installed a signboard bearing the name “Samomona Dokandar Samity Ltd.” (Like-minded Shopkeepers’ Association Ltd.).

A businessman from Mirpur, familiar with the dispute, claimed that there had been a longstanding dispute over the 10-katha plot owned by Radda.

“There are actually some disputes regarding that 10-katha plot of land belonging to Radda. Consequently, an attack was launched to seize the land under the leadership of local BNP leader Hanif Mia,” he alleged.
The Officer-in-Charge of Shah Ali Police Station confirmed that Hanif Mia had been named as an accused in the case, along with 200 to 250 unidentified individuals.

The charges include trespass, theft, intimidation and causing damage estimated at more than Tk 1.5 crore.

In a press release, Nasrin Akhtar condemned the incident and demanded legal action against those responsible.

She stated that the Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur Section 1 is a private healthcare facility that has been providing free primary healthcare, maternity and family planning services to poor and vulnerable mothers and children in partnership with the government for the past 50 years.

Akhtar further alleged that more than 250 people armed with local weapons took the security guards hostage before carrying out extensive vandalism and looting at the healthcare facility.

She maintained that the attack destroyed assets worth around Tk 1.5 crore and brought the centre’s long-running healthcare services to a complete halt.