Court rejects plea to sue Yunus, four others over measles deaths

A Dhaka court on Monday dismissed a petition seeking permission to file a criminal case against five individuals, including former Chief Adviser Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus and former health adviser Nurjahan Begum, over allegations of negligence linked to child deaths during a measles outbreak.

The application was submitted by Kishoreganj-5 lawmaker Mujibur Rahman Iqbal to the court of Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Jashita Islam. After reviewing the petition and hearing arguments, the court rejected the request, citing insufficient evidence to proceed with the case, according to the plaintiff’s lawyer, Salahuddin Laskar.

Besides Yunus and Nurjahan Begum, the petition sought to name former Health Ministry secretary Md Saidur Rahman, former special assistant to the Chief Adviser Md Sayedur Rahman, and former director general of Health Services Professor Dr Md Abu Jafor as accused.

The petitioner alleged that the interim administration had halted the import of measles-rubella vaccines, which had traditionally been procured through UNICEF. According to the complaint, the decision to switch to an open tender process delayed vaccine procurement by nearly 18 months, causing a severe shortage across the country.

The petition further claimed that despite repeated warnings from UNICEF regarding a potential vaccine crisis, authorities failed to take timely action. It alleged that the shortage contributed to a widespread measles outbreak, placing millions of children at risk.

According to figures cited in the petition, around 80,000 children have sought treatment for measles or related symptoms since 15 March, while more than 600 deaths were reported during the period.

Mujibur Rahman Iqbal also claimed that he had initially attempted to lodge a case with Banani Police Station, but was advised to seek legal remedy through the courts instead. The petition sought arrest warrants against the five individuals named in the complaint.

However, the court declined to accept the case, ruling that the allegations presented did not provide sufficient grounds to initiate criminal proceedings.