OUR CORRESPONDENT, Thakurgaon

A woman died during a Caesarean section at a private clinic in Dinajpur’s Birganj upazila on Friday night, triggering vandalism by her relatives and locals.

The authorities later sealed the clinic, while the health department has formed a three-member probe committee to investigate the incident.

Quoting the victim’s family members and locals, Officer-in-Charge of Birganj Police Station Saiful Islam said Sameja Begum, 28, wife of Abdur Razzak of Saronja village under Kaharol upazila, lost consciousness as her condition deteriorated during the C-section while giving birth to a baby girl at Birganj Clinic on Khansama Road.

As Sameja did not regain consciousness, she was referred to Dinajpur Zia Heart Foundation. Family members said she died on the way to Dinajpur due to excessive bleeding.

They further claimed that the clinic authorities referred her to Dinajpur despite knowing about her death in an attempt to avoid public outrage.

Following the incident, agitated relatives and locals vandalised the clinic around 9:30pm, confined its staff, and staged protests by lighting fires in front of the facility.

Later, police brought the situation under control, said the OC.

That night, Birganj upazila Assistant Commissioner (land) and Executive Magistrate Dipankar Chandra sealed the clinic.

The newborn girl is currently safe.

Birganj upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Dr Afroza Sultana said it could not be confirmed whether a qualified anaesthetist was present during the operation.

The OC said the clinic’s owner and manager likely went into hiding as they could not be reached over the phone till yesterday morning, while the whereabouts of the attending physician also remained unknown. Efforts are underway to contact them, he added.