2 nurses ‘sexually harassed’ by civil surgeon, aide

Sexual harassment allegations have surfaced against a physician in Cox's Bazar who, according to a complaint, coerced two nurses into travelling to Saint Martin's Island so they could "entertain" the district's civil surgeon.

The nurses accused Dr Titu Chandra Das, upazila health and family planning officer of Cox's Bazar Sadar, of attempted rape and groping one of them at a resort on the island after they refused to dance with Cox's Bazar Civil Surgeon Dr Mahbubur Rahman.

Dr Titu also made a number of lewd suggestions to the nurses in an effort to please Dr Mahbubur, said a written complaint, submitted to the Health Services Division and Directorate General of Nursing and Midwifery on January 30.

The incident occurred on January 25, the day a telemedicine centre was inaugurated at the 20-bed health centre on the island, added the complaint.

The health ministry officials confirmed receiving the complaint and said an investigation was already underway. The ministry will hold a hearing on the matter tomorrow. The accused physicians and the victims have been asked to appear.

This was not the only complaint of sexual harassment and intimidation against the duo that the ministry has received.

In a separate complaint, also filed on January 30, another nurse said she and her colleague had to leave their dormitory fearing for their safety, as Dr Mahbubur and Dr Titu expressed keen interest in spending time in their room during a government programme in Cox's Bazar Sadar upazila on January 7.

"Dr Mahbubur and Dr Titu had arranged for our stay at a dormitory of Bangladesh Medical Association that night, saying many of our colleagues would also be there. But when we got there, we found we were the only ones staying over."

"A little while later, Dr Titu called and said he and the civil surgeon would soon be coming to our room. As we didn't want to be alone with them, we fled the dorm right away.

"Later, I got another call from Dr Titu. He said the civil surgeon was very angry because we left without meeting them."

On January 30, the day the allegations came to light, Bangladesh Nurses Association and Bangladesh Diploma Nurses Association issued statements, condemning "the acts of sexual harassment committed by the officials using their position of authority".

They also demanded the health ministry initiate an impartial investigation into the harassment allegations and remove the accused from their duties within 48 hours.

FORCED TO ST MARTIN'S

Talking to The Daily Star recently, Hena Parvin, nursing supervisor at the Teknaf Upazila Health Complex, said she wanted a written order from Dr Titu when he asked on January 24 for the nurses to go to the island.

"However, he threatened me saying it was a direct order from the civil surgeon. I had no alternative but to comply," she claimed.

According to the complaint, after lunch on January 25, Dr Titu pressured the two nurses to go to the Parabar Beach Resort on the island, where the civil surgeon was staying.

"When we arrived, Dr Titu asked everyone there to leave except for us. At one stage, he started making lewd suggestions to us to entertain the civil surgeon and forced us to enter the latter's room," the complaint read.

The nurses left the place saying they needed to return to the hospital. The civil surgeon asked them to come back in the evening (to join the party).

"When we went there in the evening as instructed, we found the civil surgeon and Dr Titu dancing and singing. When we tried to leave, Dr Titu got in the way. He grabbed one of us and said 'you are here to entertain the civil surgeon'. He tried to force us to dance with the civil surgeon. But we managed to avoid it and leave the place," the complaint read.

In the complaint submitted to the health ministry, the nurses also mentioned that they had audio and video clips of the incident.

The Daily Star has the video footage of the incident.

Contacted, Dr Titu Chandra Das said the allegations against him were baseless and intended to tarnish his reputation.

"As there was no nurse on the island, the civil surgeon wanted a nurse and a midwife to attend to the patients there. Why should I force them to go there? It was the upazila health and family planning officer of Teknaf who ordered them to go there," Titu claimed.

However, Dr Ali Ahsan, the then upazila health and family planning officer of Teknaf, said the nurses did not go to St Martin's Island on his orders. "They had to go there on the order of Dr Mahbubur and Dr Titu. And I was powerless to do anything about it."

Moreover, Dr Ali said he has lately been transferred to Patuakhali as he did not take departmental action against the nurses upon Dr Mahbubur's order.

When queried, Cox's Bazar Civil Surgeon Mahbubur Rahman claimed he was unaware of any complaints lodged against him.

He also denied inviting any nurses to his room when he stayed at the Parabar Beach Resort on the night of January 25.

Md Saidur Rahman, additional secretary (administration) at Health Services Division of the health ministry, said they had received the complaints and would take necessary action after an investigation.