By Md Sajjad Hossain

DHAKA, May 29, 2025 (BSS) - "My brother died due to the negligence and carelessness of doctors."

"We tried everywhere, even at private hospitals, but none of them admitted him."

"If he had been provided with proper treatment, he could have survived," Moinuddin told BSS recently.

These were the heart-wrenching words of Moinuddin, the elder brother of martyr Jabed, who lost his life during the student-led mass uprising in July-August last year.

Jabed, 26, the youngest in the family, used to sell fruits on a van at the Mohammadpur intersection to support his family.

"On August 5, the day the fascist Sheikh Hasina regime fled the country amid massive student and public protests, Jabed left home as usual," said Mainuddin.

"I wasn't in Dhaka that day-I had gone to Bandarban for some work. When he didn't return home by evening, our mother became worried and started searching for him in nearby areas. Failing to trace him, she phoned me."

Moinuddin tried to console his mother. "I told her not to worry. He might have just gone out somewhere and would return soon. But he didn't come home the next day (August 6) either."

Deeply concerned, Moinuddin left Bandarban that very night and reached Dhaka by 9am on August 7.

"We looked everywhere, but there was no trace of him. We even searched the mortuary of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH)," he said.

As hours passed, their fear grew. "My mother kept losing consciousness. We were completely devastated," he recounted.

"Finally, around 12:45 am, I received a phone call from the Dhaka Dental College and Hospital," Moinuddin said in a trembling voice. "They informed me that my brother had been shot and was undergoing treatment there."

"When we went there, I found my brother lying unconscious. When we tried to go near him, police prevented us, and we were even forced to return home."

In the morning, when Moinuddin arrived at the hospital, he found that Jabed had undergone surgery on his face, with his head wrapped in bandages. The bullet had entered just below his left ear, shattered his jaw, and lodged beneath the skin near his chin, he told referring to doctors.

"We tried to talk to him, but he could not speak. He narrated to us-pointing to his injuries-that after he was shot, the police hit him on the head with the butt of a rifle. Later, we learnt that the blow had also caused damage to his brain," Moinuddin said.

"Blood was coming out of his ear. There was no way to stop the bleeding," said Moinuddin.

Following the doctor's advice, the family took him to Agargaon Neuroscience Hospital, from where they came to know about the injury in the brain.

But doctors told them to go to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, as his condition was continuously deteriorating.

He said, "When we reached DMCH, we could not admit him to the hospital. After three hours, we were able to admit him."

"Doctors at the hospital would come once a day and see him from a distance. He was a bullet-ridden patient, and he had a brain injury. But they did not take any special care," he said in a sobbing tone.

Moinuddin said, "My brother left us at around 5 am on August 13 without getting proper treatment."

Even if Jabed had been kept at Neuroscience Hospital that day, he would not have died. There were few patients there; at least proper treatment would have been ensured. But they sent him to DMCH, where he was admitted to the neuroscience department.

"So what was the difficulty in keeping him there (neuroscience hospital)?" asked Moinuddin.

He said that Jabed's body was brought from the DMCH mortuary on August 13 and buried around 9 pm in the Mohammadpur Martyred Intellectual Graveyard.

While talking to BSS, Jabed's mother, Nurjahan Begum, 50, said, "I want justice for the murder of my child."

"Jabed was a very good boy. He used to do business with us at this intersection for a long time. He was a very simple and mindful boy," said Masud Ali, a vegetable vendor.

He said, "Jabed respected me like an elder brother. But how could this happen? We want his killer to be brought to justice."

Moinuddin mentioned that a murder case has been filed with Shahbagh Police Station against scores of people, including ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal.

He hoped that his brother's killers would be brought to justice in this case.