A medical board yesterday collected samples for DNA test from seven children of former deputy inspector general (DIG) of police Anisur Rahman following a High Court order to determine whether they are siblings.
Head of the medical board Prof Mizanul Haque after collecting blood and saliva told reporters it will take a week to complete the test.
Earlier in the morning, Anisur Rahman’s lawyer advocate Kazi Sajwar Hossain brought the children to the court amid police escort.
After seeing the children, the HC observed that they are seriously suffering from malnutrition and could even die if they are not given proper treatment.
The court also ordered Bangladesh National Woman Lawyers Association (BNWLA) and Bangladesh Society for Establishment of Human Rights (BSEHR) to take steps for proper treatment of the children — four boys and three girls — under a child specialist.
The children’s ‘mother’ Anwara Rahman is in jail for the last few months in an extortion case, while the ‘father’ did not appear yesterday.
The children are Marium, Aimon Rahman Anis, Alas Rahman Akand, Nafis Rahman Nais, Dian Rahman, Jannatul Nafiza Rahman and Jannatul Anisa Rahman.
The HC asked Dhaka Medical College authorities to carry out the tests at its DNA Lab under the supervision of the Supreme Court (SC) authorities upon separate petitions filed by BNWLA and BSEHR in 2006.
The HC bench of Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain and Justice Farid Ahmed asked BNWLA and BSEHR to take the children to BNWLA’s shelter home ‘Proshanti’ in Agargaon in the city after the sample collection.
The children were taken to the shelter home at around 5:00pm from the lab where they were taken at 2:15pm.
The court also directed the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police to ensure the children’ security.
It asked a deputy registrar of the Supreme Court to supervise the DNA tests and ordered BNWLA and BSEHR to bear all expenses.
The court said it would pass further order subject to getting the test reports on August 12.
There were newspaper reports in 2006 triggering controversy about the ex-DIG couple maintaining a household with 14 children, seven of them seemingly of same age of 18 months to 24 months.
Since then, the couple is claiming that the seven were “septuplets”.
The HC yesterday appointed former attorney general advocate Mahmudul Islam as amicus curiae (friend of court) for legal interpretation. He opined to the court for conducting DNA test.
BSEHR Executive Director advocate Alena Khan filed the complaint case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act with Badda Police Station in this connection on June 15, 2006. She told reporters yesterday her organisation would bear the expenses for examining the DNA test reports in Singapore if the HC permits.
Earlier, the couple had declined to go for DNA test at Dhaka Medical College despite a magistrate court’s order.
Advocate Mohammad Asaduzzaman, advocate Salma Ali and advocate Fowzia Karim Firoze appeared for the human rights organisations, while Kazi Sajwar Hossain stood for the ex-DIG.
Categories: Bangla, Bangladesh, Bangladesh News
