A proscribed Awami League leader died in custody at Kishoreganj District Jail on Monday morning, a day after securing bail from a court.
The deceased, Ranjit Kumar Ghosh, was a resident of Sherpur village in Chauddashat union under Kishoreganj Sadar upazila. He served as a four-time member of Chauddashat union parishad and was the general secretary of Chauddashat union Awami League.
According to prison authorities, Ranjit fell suddenly ill inside the jail at around 9:40am on Monday.
On the advice of the assistant surgeon at the jail hospital, he was transported by ambulance to Shaheed Syed Nazrul Islam Medical College Hospital, where he was admitted at 10:30am.
He died at 10:45am while undergoing treatment in the male medicine ward, and his body was subsequently kept at the hospital morgue.
Police and local sources said Ranjit faced two cases registered under the Anti-Terrorism Act at Kishoreganj Sadar Police Station, filed in June and August this year.
Jasim Uddin, advocate for Ranjit, said his client had been detained in prison since his arrest on the night of 21 August.
He added that Ranjit was an FIR-named accused in one of the cases. A court granted him bail on Sunday, and he was scheduled to be released from prison on Monday afternoon.
Ranjit’s family alleged that despite being informed of his health condition, prison authorities failed to provide timely medical treatment. Khokon Ghosh, son of the deceased, said his father suffered from age-related ailments, including breathing difficulties.
He said the family had informed jail authorities about his health and submitted medical documents. Khokon Ghosh claimed he had heard from various people over the past few days that his father was unwell, but prison officials took no action.
He alleged that his father died inside the prison and was taken to the hospital only afterward to conceal official negligence. He added that timely medical care could have saved his father’s life.
Khokon also said prison authorities did not inform the family of the death, and they only learned of it when an unfamiliar person telephoned his sister’s mobile phone.
Demanding a proper investigation into the incident and exemplary punishment for those responsible, he expressed deep sorrow, saying, “We were waiting for father to be released from jail so we could take him home. But now we have to return home with his body.”
Jahanara Begum, jail super of Kishoreganj District Jail-1, confirmed the death of Ranjit Ghosh. She said he had been incarcerated for several months and had been suffering from illness, receiving treatment at the prison hospital.
She explained that when his condition deteriorated on Monday morning, he was sent to Shaheed Syed Nazrul Islam Medical College Hospital for advanced care, where doctors declared him dead. She denied all allegations of medical neglect in prison.
