An attack and vandalism spree targeting two private healthcare establishments in Khulna city on Tuesday evening has sparked panic amongst local medical service providers. According to facility management, a mob attacked Rongdhonu Clinic & Diagnostic Centre and Abdullah Pathology on Samsur Rahman Road, demanding 500,000 BDT in extortion money and threatening to shut down both establishments permanently.
Witnesses and staff reported that the confrontation began at dusk on 3 November, when a small group of five to seven individuals entered the premises whilst roughly ten to twelve others waited outside. The crowd rapidly expanded to between forty and fifty individuals who kicked open doors, hurled bricks, and smashed property. During the rampage, a female healthcare worker’s husband was physically assaulted. When the worker intervened to protect her husband, she was shoved to the ground, sustaining injuries to her lip. The attackers subsequently threatened the staff before fleeing the scene.
Arriving law enforcement personnel found brickbats and debris scattered across the entrance and interior of the medical facility. Expressing grave concern over the safety of healthcare workers, Dr Mahbubur Rahman, owner of Abdullah Pathology, questioned how medical professionals could continue providing critical services to the public under constant fear and intimidation. Traumatised staff members highlighted that the diagnostic centre serves as their primary source of livelihood.
However, the Officer-in-Charge of Khulna Metropolitan Police’s Sadar Police Station, Lokman Hossain, disputed the extortion allegations. According to police, the disturbance stemmed from a dispute over a patient’s medical test results, which were reportedly delayed by 72 hours. The officer stated that aggrieved local residents created tension at the facility over the delay, adding that the matter was subsequently resolved amicably.
The incident follows a concerning pattern of intimidation targeting healthcare and pharmaceutical establishments across Khulna. On 24 October, assailants vandalised Sondhani Diagnostic Centre on Babukhan Road alongside its sister facility, Sondhani Medicare Hospital on Majid Sarani in Sonadanga, where similar extortion demands were reported. In a separate incident, Chayonika Pharmacy, a prominent establishment at the Tutpara Central Road intersection, has remained closed since 29 October due to persistent extortion demands, highlighting growing insecurity within the city’s private health sector.
