HC orders probe into Rahib Reza's death at LabAid

The High Court on Monday ordered the formation of a committee headed by an additional secretary of the health ministry to investigate the death of Rahib Reza, who died while undergoing endoscopy at LabAid Hospital in the capital.

The committee has been asked to submit its report within three months.

The bench of Justice KM Kamrul Kader and Justice Khizir Hayat also issued a rule asking why the hospital should not be ordered to pay Tk10 crore in compensation to Rahib Reza's family after hearing a primary hearing on a writ petition filed by the deceased's family.

The rule further asked why a medical board should not be formed to investigate the deaths of patients due to the negligence of doctors.

The LabAid authorities, health secretary and DG of the health department have been asked to respond to the rule within four weeks.

Barrister Rashna Imam appeared for the writ petition, while Deputy Attorney General Sheikh Md Saifujjaman appeared for the state.

According to media reports, Rahib Reza, 31, a product manager and IT consultant at a company named Startic Engineering, died of cardiac arrest while undergoing endoscopy at LabAid Hospital in Dhanmondi.

His family alleged that Reza was administered anaesthesia without seeing the test report at LabAid Hospital. An endoscopy was performed even though he had physical complications.

Due to this, he had a cardiac arrest and at one stage his physical condition became more complicated. Reza died on 19 February while undergoing treatment at the ICU of LabAid Hospital.

Reza went to LabAid Hospital in Dhanmondi with a gas problem in his stomach and met Professor Dr Mamun Al Mahtab (Swapnil), head of the Department of Interventional Hepatology at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University. Dr Swapnil then advised him to undergo an endoscopy at LabAid on 15 February