Two young siblings have reportedly died after consuming 'paracetamol syrup' to lower their fever in Brahmanbaria's Ashuganj.
The incident took place in Durgapur village on Thursday, said Azad Rahman, chief of Ashuganj Police Station.
The boys were identified as Yasin Khan, 7, and Morsalin Khan, 5, sons of Sujon Khan, a labourer.
Their mother Lima Begum said Morsalin caught a fever two days before their death, while Yasin had been suffering from high temperature for even longer, reports bdnews24.com.
On Thursday, they bought a bottle of paracetamol syrup from a nearby pharmacy and gave it to the boys. Both the boys began to vomit after ingesting it.
The two were initially taken to Ashuganj Upazila Health Complex before being transferred to the district's central hospital, according to Lima.
Yasin died around 9 pm on the way home from the hospital, while Morsalin breathed his last at 10.30 pm upon reaching home, she said.
Both of them were unconscious when they were taken to the hospital, said Ashuganj Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Nupur Saha. "It could be a case of poisoning," she said.
“They were sent to the district central hospital for a stomach wash as the health complex lacks the provisions to carry out the procedure."
A general diary has been filed over the incident, said OC Azad.
“The syrup's package had an expiry date of 2023 printed on it. We will send it to the lab for testing."
The owner of the drugstore "went into hiding" after the incident, according to Azad. The bodies of the children have been sent to the morgue of the central hospital for autopsy.