Khaleda Zia died of 'slow poisoning' in prison: M Naser Rahman

BNP National Executive Committee member M Naser Rahman has alleged that former Prime Minister and BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia was subjected to 'slow poisoning' in prison in a planned manner, which caused her subsequent physical complications and pushed her towards death.

M Naser Rahman said that in November 2021, he informed the BNP Secretary General about the information and evidence of this poisoning for the first time. He also claimed that at that time, the Secretary General was invited to his office and authentic information was presented. According to his statement, the BNP Secretary General later made the matter public based on that information.

He further claimed that in February 2018, Begum Khaleda Zia was kept in the abandoned Central Jail and she stayed there for about 13 months. He alleged that the ‘slow poisoning’ was going on during that period until the matter was detected in March 2019.

M Naser Rahman said that a foreign national involved in the incident was brought into the prison disguised as a prison guard. According to his claim, a gang led by General (retd) Tariq Siddiqui was involved in the incident. He further said that in March 2019, the foreign national was caught by the military intelligence agency and a pouch containing poison was recovered from him.

He said that the day after the incident, Begum Khaleda Zia was transferred to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Hospital, where she was undergoing treatment for about a year. He alleged that due to the effect of the poisoning, Khaleda Zia developed multiple serious diseases including liver cirrhosis and kidney complications, which ultimately led to her death.