Khaleda Zia battles in CCU
Abu Jakir :
Former Bangladesh prime minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was shifted to the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of Dhaka’s Evercare Hospital on Thursday as her condition deteriorated, deepening national anxiety and reviving a politically explosive question long echoed by her party: was she ever subjected to “slow poisoning” during her incarceration?
The 80-year-old three-time prime minister, already battling multiple chronic ailments, was admitted to the hospital late Sunday after developing a severe chest infection that affected both her heart and lungs.
A medical board—comprising specialists from Bangladesh and abroad—is supervising her treatment, with senior BNP leaders describing her condition as “extremely critical.”
A BNP insider told this correspondent that Zia has been kept under round-the-clock observation in the CCU as her lungs struggle to fight infection and her heart condition continues to worsen.
“Every relevant test is being run repeatedly. The situation is being monitored with utmost caution,” the insider said, requesting anonymity.
BNP Media Cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan said the party has urged people across the country to pray for her recovery. Special prayers and munajat were held nationwide after Jumu’a prayers on Friday.
A sudden deterioration and an old question resurfaces As BNP mobilised prayers, senior party leader and freedom fighter Hasan Uddin Sarkar revived a question that has lingered for years: was Khaleda Zia ever slow-poisoned?
His remarks reflect the BNP’s enduring suspicion that Zia’s declining health stems from the conditions of her incarceration under the previous government.
No independent evidence has ever corroborated the allegation, yet it remains central to the party’s political narrative.
On 25 November 2021, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, speaking at a Youth Dal rally in front of the National Press Club, recalled the squalid conditions of Zia’s two-year detention during the 1/11 military-backed caretaker government. He had said many were asking whether efforts were made to “slow poison” her during that period.
Given the conduct of those who controlled the state then—and later the Awami League government—“nothing was impossible,” he added.
Fakhrul alleged that Khaleda Zia was confined in a damp, dilapidated cell where rats and insects roamed, and that medical care was withheld even as her health worsened.
“A fabricated case was used to keep her behind bars. Today, as she fights for her life, the question of what was done to her in custody becomes more urgent,” he said.
Chief Adviser expresses concern
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus expressed “deep concern” over Zia’s condition and instructed relevant authorities to ensure there was no shortage in her treatment. Officials said he receives regular updates from the medical board.
“Khaleda Zia’s contribution during Bangladesh’s democratic transitions has been significant,” Yunus said in a written statement. “In this critical moment, the nation must stand with her. The government is fully prepared to provide whatever assistance is necessary.”
BNP leaders revive allegations against past governments
The “slow poisoning” allegation has resurfaced repeatedly in recent weeks, with several senior BNP figures linking her health complications to her time in custody during the Awami League’s rule.
On 14 October, BNP vice chairman and former minister Air Vice Marshal (retd.) Altaf Hossain Chowdhury alleged that the “fascist regime” had attempted to eliminate her quietly. “Had she been allowed abroad, everything would have been exposed,” he said.
In another recent address, former MP and freedom fighter Hasan Uddin Sarkar warned that conspiracies against the BNP leadership “have never stopped,” claiming similar attempts were made against Islamic scholar Delwar Hossain Sayeedi—an allegation long circulated within BNP and Jamaat but never independently verified.
A nation watching closely
The episode has injected fresh volatility into an already charged political climate. BNP, which re-emerged as a major political force following the student-led uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government on 5 August 2024, is once again rallying around its ailing leader—now both a symbol of endurance and a focal point for opposition mobilisation.
For supporters, Khaleda Zia—whose elder son Tarique Rahman lives in London and younger son Arafat Rahman died of cardiac arrest in 2025—remains central to the party’s identity. Her sudden health crisis has therefore become both an emotional shockwave and a renewed battleground for political narratives.
Yet despite decades of speculation, no medical board—past or present—has publicly indicated any evidence of poisoning. The allegation remains unproven but politically potent, resurfacing each time her health takes a critical turn.
As she remains in the CCU under strict monitoring, the country waits anxiously—some praying for her recovery, others pondering the unresolved past, and many wondering how this moment may reshape Bangladesh’s turbulent political road ahead.