Rabeya-Rukiya’s home return in Mujib Borsho is a matter of pride: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday said that the return of the successfully separated conjoined twins Rabeya and Rukiya to their home in the ‘Mujib Borsho’ is a matter of joy and pride and wished them good health and beautiful life.

“I wish good health and a beautiful life to Rabeya and Rukiya. Their return to home in the “Mujib Shoto Borsho” is a matter of joy and pride for all,” she said while addressing a function marking the return of the twins to their home from the CMH, Dhaka, joining virtually from her official Ganabhaban residence in the capital. “It is truly a matter of joy as Rabeya and Rukiya are returning to their home and laps of the parents in the month of March,” added the Prime Minister.

She said in this month (March) many things happened to the history of the Bangalees such as Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was born, the country’s independence was achieved and the Language Movement was initiated on 11 March in 1948 while Bangabandhu gave the March 7 historic speech.

Joining through a video conference, the Prime Minister asked the twins how they are. In reply, one of the babies said that she is fine and asked the premier how she is. The PM replied that she is also fine. Sheikh Hasina said that she took the initiative for the treatment of the conjoined babies after her younger sister Sheikh Rehana informed her about the twins seeing a news item in a newspaper.

She described the 33-hour long surgery as “Operation Freedom”, and “great achievement for Bangladesh” as it was conducted in the country’s Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Dhaka by a group of Hungarian and local physicians.

The Prime Minister said that she had taken the decision to conduct the operation in the country’s CMH so that the local doctors can gather experience to this end as it is a rare operation and it happened in Bangladesh for the first time. She said that her government had gathered all the expert physicians of the country and from Hungary to avert any lacking in conducting the operation successfully.

Surgeons from Budapest-based medical aid charity Action for Defenceless People Foundation (ADPF) and local doctors performed the surgery and the series of medical procedures dubbed as “Operation Freedom” from August 1 in 2019.

“To separate a twin conjoined at the head is totally a new task. And it has been done successfully,” the Prime Minister said and greeted all involved in the treatment procedures that include conducting 48 operations on Rabeya and Rukiya to help them recover and return to their home separated.

Speaking on the occasion, mother of the twins and a school teacher Taslima Khatun expressed her gratitude to the Prime Minister for making all arrangements for successful operations of her daughters, saying, “We will always remember you with due gratitude.”

Chief of Army Staff General Aziz Ahmed also spoke at the function while Coordinator of the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, Dr Samanta Lal Sen gave the welcome address at the CMH, Dhaka Cantonment. The army chief said that the twins will get healthcare services free of cost for rest of their life at all the CMH of the country.

The children were born healthy through caesarean operation in northern Pabna district on July 16, 2016 to school teacher couple Rafiqul Islam and Taslima Khatun.