DHAKA: Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia was admitted to the capital’s Evercare Hospital on November 23 with a lung infection. She is undergoing treatment at the hospital’s Coronary Care Unit (CCU) under the supervision of local and foreign specialist doctors from the medical board, the local media reported.
The 80-year-old former Prime Minister, who is suffering from various ailments, is now under close observation by doctors. Quoting doctors, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said that her physical condition is very critical.
Muhammad Yunus, the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, expressed concern about the health condition of Khaleda Zia, the Chairperson of BNP. On Friday night, the Chief Adviser sent Asif Nazrul, an adviser to the interim government, to Evercare Hospital in the capital to inquire about Khaleda Zia’s physical condition.
Begum Khaleda Zia was last seen in public on November 21 when she went to the Senakunj Community Center in Dhaka Cantonment to attend a reception to mark Armed Forces Day. Sitting in a wheelchair, she held a brief meeting with Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus there. Mrs Zia seemed quite well that day.
Begum Khaleda has been suffering from various physical ailments including heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, liver cirrhosis, and kidney complications for a long time. She went to London on January 8 for advanced treatment.
After undergoing treatment at the London Clinic for 17 consecutive days, she received treatment at her son Tarique Rahman’s house on January 25 under the supervision of London Clinic specialist doctors Professor Patrick Kennedy and Professor Jennifer Cross. The BNP Chairperson returned to Bangladesh on May 6 after receiving advanced treatment in the UK.
Begum Khaleda Zia served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. She was the first female Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She is the widow of former President of Bangladesh and army commander Ziaur Rahman.