Doctors, students occupy Dhaka Medical director's office demanding resignation

Highlights:

• Doctors and students occupied the director's office from 12pm to 2pm
• Protesters demanded the resignation of Brig Gen Asaduzzaman
• Hospital employees staged a counter-protest over an alleged assault
• Health ministry officials intervened to defuse the tension

A section of doctors and students at Dhaka Medical College Hospital occupied the director's office for around two hours today (11 August), demanding his resignation over alleged administrative irregularities.

The protesters accused Director Brigadier General Asaduzzaman of corruption, obstructing treatment for students injured during the July uprising, and keeping Administrative Officer Rezaul Islam at Dhaka Medical despite his transfer while preventing his replacement, Mozammel Haque, from joining.

The protest continued from 12pm to 2pm, with doctors and students chanting slogans including, "One point, one demand – the director must resign."

At the same time, third- and fourth-class employees staged a counter-protest demanding action over the alleged assault of an employee. The two groups faced off in the hospital's administrative area, creating tension, although emergency and inpatient services remained normal.

The situation eased after Health Ministry Secretary Md Kamruzzaman Chowdhury, acting Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services Prof Dr Prabhat Chandra Biswas and Doctors' Association of Bangladesh Secretary General Dr Md Zahirul Islam Shakil intervened.

The doctors and students then left the director's office, while the employees also withdrew their protest.

After meeting those involved, Kamruzzaman said officials had gone to the director's office to defuse tensions between the doctors and employees.

"We convinced the doctors to leave, and the employees were also moved away later," he said, adding that the issue would be discussed at the ministry and expressing hope for a quick resolution.

Hospital sources said discontent had grown over the administrative officer dispute. The protesters demanded that Mozammel be allowed to join Dhaka Medical alongside the director's resignation.

Dr Saiful Alam Badsha, a doctor at the hospital and joint general secretary of Chhatra Dal's central committee, said during the protest that the sit-in would continue until the director resigned.

The protesters also alleged that Asaduzzaman, who was appointed during the Awami League government, had been involved in corruption in collusion with another official.

The director did not answer repeated phone calls seeking his response to the allegations.