TDS Desk:

Jailed retired Supreme Court Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik has been transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital following surgery to stop internal bleeding from ruptured testicles.

Manik sustained the critical injuries on Saturday after unruly people attacked him on the premises of the Sylhet court while he was being taken to a judge. The court sent him to jail.

Jail authorities said he was taken to Osmani Medical College Hospital for surgery on Saturday night, according to Sylhet DIG (Prisons) Md. Sagir Mia.

He said Manik’s condition was critical due to internal bleeding from an assault, which resulted in one of his testicles rupturing.

Sagir Mia also mentioned that Justice Manik was already in poor health at the time of his detention at the border. He emphasised that medical care should have been arranged before presenting him before court.

Upon arrival at the hospital, Manik was immediately taken to the operation theater, where he underwent a 45-minute surgery. According to hospital Director Mahbubur Rahman Bhuiyan, the operation was successful, and Manik is now stable and under observation in the ICU.

He said that they had been informed by prison authorities about Justice Manik’s injuries and the potential need for surgery. Upon examination in the operating room, it was found that his scrotum had been damaged, which they managed to repair successfully. He is now under close monitoring.

Earlier on Saturday afternoon, justice Manik was taken to the Sylhet Chief Judicial Magistrate-1 Alamgir Hossain’s court. On the court premises unruly people threw shoes and eggs at him. Some even assaulted him. It remains unclear whether his injuries occurred during this attack or before his detention. The crowd also chanted derogatory slogans, calling him a “fraud.”

After being presented before court, Justice Manik was formally arrested under Section 54 and sent to prison. The army provided security during his transfer from the court to the prison, preventing any further attacks.

On the night of Friday, 23rd August, Justice Manik was apprehended by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) while attempting to flee to India illegally through the Dona border in Kanaighat Upazila, Sylhet. It is reported that he was trying to escape by paying a large sum of money to locals. Following his arrest, locals allegedly assaulted him and stole his money.

In the early hours of Saturday, BGB members handed him over to Kanaighat Police Station. Police have confirmed that a case has been filed against him in Dhaka.