Khaleda Zia’s condition stable in CCU, says her physician

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, who has been admitted to the CCU at Dhaka’s Evercare Hospital, is now ‘stable’, according to her personal physician Prof AZM Zahid Hossain.

“Under the medical board’s monitoring, Madam’s condition is now stable. Alhamdullilah, she will improve slowly,” he told the media on Tuesday.

Asked when she would be allowed to return home, he said, “Madam is receiving treatment and must continue to do so. Even if she returns home, she has to remain under close monitoring by the doctors. The board will decide today when she can return home.”

Khaleda was admitted to Evercare Hospital on the night of March 30 after she fell ill at her Gulshan home. The medical team overseeing her care then assigned her several tests.

The 78-year-old former prime minister has been battling a range of health issues, including liver cirrhosis, arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, and kidney and lung complications.

The BNP chief was sentenced to jail in two graft cases in 2017. She had served her sentence at the old central jail of Dhaka until the government decided to suspend her jail time on medical grounds amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Khaleda was released from prison on March 25, 2020, by executive order and the government has since extended her time out of jail on six-month spells on several occasions, most recently on March 27.

Despite her family's repeated pleas, however, Khaleda will not be allowed to travel abroad for treatment under the terms of her release.

The family has brought in doctors from abroad to guide her treatment.