A Dhaka court on Sunday received a petition seeking criminal proceedings against four people, including former Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus and former Health Adviser Nurjahan Begum, over allegations that failures to procure measles vaccines and ensure adequate treatment contributed to the deaths of more than 600 children.

The petition was filed before the court of Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Joshita Islam by Sirajul Islam, whose nine-month-old daughter, Sauda Muskan, died after contracting measles.

Also named in the petition are former Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Prof Dr Md Abu Jafar and former Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.

Plaintiff's lawyer Taslima Jahan Poppy said the court recorded the complainant's statement and kept the matter pending for further orders.

According to the petition, Sauda Muskan developed a high fever in early March and was initially treated at local health facilities before being admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. 

She was later transferred to the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Mohakhali on March 22 after her condition deteriorated.

The petition alleges gross negligence by hospital staff, claiming doctors instructed the child's mother to administer oxygen herself before a cleaner eventually attached the oxygen mask. The child died about two hours later.

The complainant further alleged that the authorities failed to procure adequate measles vaccines and take timely preventive measures, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of children nationwide.

The petition comes less than a month after another complaint was filed on June 8 against five individuals, including Yunus and Nurjahan Begum, over alleged failures in responding to the measles outbreak. That petition was later dismissed by the court.