A parliamentary seat has been surrendered, party committees dissolved and 21 people arrested. Yet nearly two weeks after the attack on the Radda healthcare centre in Dhaka’s Mirpur, former BNP lawmaker Ferdousi Ahmed Misty has still not been named in a criminal case. Why?
Misty resigned from her reserved parliamentary seat on 1 October at the direction of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, following allegations linking her to the 24 September attack on the Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur 1.
However, her resignation, coupled with organisational disciplinary measures, has yet to translate into criminal proceedings, prompting legal experts to question whether political accountability is being treated as a substitute for judicial justice.
The attack on the Mirpur-1 facility, which provides maternal and child healthcare and family planning services, involved looting and the destruction of buildings, sparking widespread outrage.
On 26 September, a case was filed with Shah Ali Police Station naming Mohammad Hanif Mia, a former BNP leader, alongside 200 to 250 unidentified individuals. Despite allegations framing Misty as a principal figure behind the incident, her name was conspicuously absent from the complaint.
The case has since been transferred to the Detective Branch (DB), which has arrested 21 suspects. However, investigators have announced no decision regarding the former lawmaker.
DB Deputy Commissioner Rakib Khan told TIMES that further information could only be provided as the investigation progresses.
Prime Minister Tarique, who was attending the UN General Assembly in New York during the incident, reportedly received intelligence reports linking Misty to the violence upon his return, prompting his directive for her resignation.
The BNP also dissolved local party committees. Yet, despite expectations of legal action, more than a week has passed without charges or her arrest.
Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed maintained that evidence must be established before prosecution can proceed, emphasising that political discipline and legal processes remain separate.
Badiul Alam Majumdar, secretary of Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik, said, “Action has been taken against MP Mishti over allegations of vandalising a hospital. It is only natural that a criminal case would be filed against her over the incident. Since that has not happened, the matter is unusual.”
Supreme Court lawyer Abu Hena Razzaki questioned why Misty was spared from direct investigation. “MP Misty was forced to resign because she was involved in the crime,” Razzaki told TIMES. “If the law were allowed to take its own course, a criminal case would have been filed and she could have been arrested. The absence of a case indicates the process is being controlled.”
Several senior BNP leaders, including standing committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy and Selima Rahman, were approached for getting the ruling party’s version, but none of them agreed to speak.
Legal analysts also highlighted wider security failures, questioning how a healthcare facility near a police station could be demolished under an elected government without immediate law enforcement intervention.
Political scientist Dilara Choudhury echoed these concerns, saying, “Resigning from a parliamentary seat after committing a crime is not a solution. The state must ensure appropriate punishment.”
Misty’s involvement has also drawn attention to a longstanding land dispute involving the Radda centre. Elected as a ward commissioner in 2002 and as an MP in 2026, Misty served in 2006 as president of Samamana Dokandar Samabaya Samity Limited.
Archives reveal her signature on a 2006 application requesting the allocation of the Radda centre’s land to the cooperative.
While the 2006 document does not inherently establish criminal liability for the recent violence, it underscores the deep-seated commercial interests surrounding the site.
For now, with 21 suspects in custody, the unresolved question remains whether Misty’s resignation will be the final consequence she faces, or merely a prelude to judicial accountability.
