Mohammed Nasim passes away

Veteran politician and Awami League presidium member Mohammed Nasim passed away while undergoing treatment at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital today morning. He was 72.

"After he suffered a massive cardiac arrest at 11:00am, we tried our best to stabilise his heart function, but we failed. We declared him dead at 11:10am," said Dr Raziul Haque, a doctor of the hospital.

His physical condition deteriorated last night as he developed a lung infection.

Yesterday afternoon, Dr Raziul said Nasim had "slightly" improved as his blood pressure had stabilised and his blood was clotting.

The 13-member medical board led by Dr Kanak Kanti Barua, a renowned neurosurgeon and Vice-Chancellor of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), held a meeting around 8:00pm and found that Nasim's lung had been infected and he is also suffering from fever.

Infected by Covid-19 and later suffering a stroke, Nasim had been in a "deep coma" since June 5.

Nasim left behind his wife and three children.

His son Tanvir Shakil Joy, also a former AL lawmaker, earlier told media on June 5 that his father had undergone a successful surgery after suffering from a stroke.

On June 1, Nasim was admitted to the Bangladesh Specialized Hospital as he was feeling unwell. Later, he tested positive for coronavirus.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Speaker of Parliament Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury and top leaders of different political, social, cultural and professional bodies have expressed deep shock at the demise of the veteran politician.

In her condolence message, the prime minister said Bangladesh lost a patriotic and pro-people leader. "And I lost one of my trusted co-fighters," she said.

NASIM'S POLITICAL CAREER

Mohammed Nasim was elected as Member of Parliament six times. During the 1996 AL government, he served in the ministries of home affairs, housing and public works, and posts and telecommunications.

After the 2014 elections, he became the minister of health affairs of the Awami League government.

He was the spokesperson of the AL-led 14-party alliance. He set up several educational institutions, including in Dhaka and Sirajganj.

Nasim was also the chairman of the parliamentary committee on food.

He was born on April 2, 1948, in Kazipur upazila of Sirajganj district. His father, Shaheed Captain M Mansur Ali, was one of the organisers of the liberation war of Bangladesh and a close associate of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Mansur Ali served as the minister of finance, industry and commerce in the government of Bangladesh formed at Amrakanon in Baidyanathtala, Meherpur, on the eve of the War of Liberation in 1971, as well as in the cabinet of the post-independence Bangabandhu government.

Mohammed Nasim's mother's name is Mosammat Amina Khatun.