Patuakhali BCL leader dies in jail custody

A Chhatra League leader, whose activities are currently banned, died while in custody at Patuakhali district jail yesterday.

The deceased is Shafiqul Islam Khan, 38, former president of Dumki upazila unit BCL. He was a resident of Sreerampur village under Dumki upazila, jail sources said.

Shafiqul suddenly became sick around 4:30pm yesterday and was first admitted to Patuakhali Medical College Hospital. As his condition deteriorated, he was referred to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in Barishal around 5:30pm. However, he died on the way to Barishal at around 8:30pm, said Patuakhali district jail’s Jailer Abdur Rab Mia.

Senior Jail Superintendent of Barishal central jail Muhammad Manzur Hossain said the body was handed over to the deceased’s family around 5:00pm today following an autopsy.

Patuakhali district jail physician Dr Md Zia said Shafiqul had long been suffering from heart disease. He was earlier sent to Barishal and later to Dhaka for advanced treatment and was brought back to Patuakhali jail after receiving treatment.

“His condition had remained critical for several days, and despite being rushed to hospital yesterday, he could not be saved,” he added.

However, Shafiqul’s family members expressed anger over his death. His younger brother Zahidul Islam alleged that Shafiqul had been subjected to political harassment.

“My brother was shown arrested in three cases and kept in jail, although he was not named in the first information reports,” he said.

Court sources in Patuakhali said Shafiqul was arrested by Dumki police on August 11, 2025, during the “Devil Hunt” operation. Although he secured bail in one case later, he was subsequently shown arrested in a vandalism case filed over an attack on the district office of BNP.

After obtaining bail from the High Court in that case, he was again shown arrested in another case, the sources added.