The father of both the children, Manzoor Hussain, is a mathematics teacher at Rajshahi Cadet College. He lives with his family in the Cadet College Quarters. He is from Chuniyapara village of Durgapur upazila of Rajshahi.
The younger daughter developed fever on Wednesday morning and died while being taken to the hospital in the afternoon. After his death they noticed some dark spots on his body.
The next day, the elder daughter displayed similar physical ailments, including fever and vomiting. The parents took him to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Rajshahi.
Abu Hena Mustafa Kamal, in-charge of the intensive care unit (ICU) at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital, said the siblings had eaten the fruit before falling ill. When they asked the father if the plums were cleaned before eating, he replied, “The house servant had gathered them from the ground under a tree, and they had not been cleaned.”