A man and his niece died after falling into a pond in Barishal's Banaripara upazila on Monday.
The deceased were Qaium Fakir, 35, a resident of Malikanda village in Saidkati union of the upazila, and his 4-year-old niece Fatema, daughter of Alauddin of Mahishapota village.
Officer-in-charge (OC) of Banaripara Police Station SM Maksud Alam Chowdhury said that Fatema, who was visiting her grandmother's house, went to the pond with her uncle Qaium around 2 pm on Monday.
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When they did not return, their families started searching for them in the pond.
Around 5 pm, family members found the duo drowned in the pond and took them to the Upazila Health Complex where duty doctors declared them dead.
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"We suspect that Fatema fell into the pond and drowned, while Qaium tried to rescue her, and he also died due to heart attack,” the Banaripara Police Station OC said.
Their bodies were handed over to their family without autopsy, following their request and the order of the Additional District Magistrate, added the OC.