rape incidents BD
Faridpur ‘gang rape’: 3 along with mother-daughter arrested
Police have arrested three persons, including a mother-daughter duo, for allegedly plotting a gang rape at Madhukhali Upazila of Faridpur.
The arrestees are Rozina, her mother Parul Aktar and one Zakirul Haque.
On Tuesday night, the victim’s father filed a case against the trio and accused several other anonymous people of human trafficking and rape.
The victim recently came to her father’s home at Madhukhali from her husband’s village. On Sunday, her friend Rozina came to visit her.
After an argument with the victim, Rozina with her mother and some men abducted her from her father’s house that afternoon.
Also read: Rape epidemic: 2 held over gang-rape of Pabna woman
The victim said they took her to different places, drugged her and had her raped several times.
They dropped her in front of her father’s home on Tuesday morning after her condition deteriorated.
Her father said the victim’s condition has improved. She is currently being treated at the One-Stop Crisis Centre of Faridpur Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical College Hospital.
Madhukhali Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge Rathindra Nath Tarafdar said Zakirul was arrested in a drive on Tuesday night after the arrest of Rozina and Parul.
The women are residents of Modhukhali Asrayan centre. Zakirul, hailing from Gopalganj, was a contractual worker at the Madhukhali Sugar Mill, said police.
Also read: Housewife ‘gang-raped’ in Patuakhali
OC Rathindra Nath said the court had sent the three accused to jail. The other accused will be arrested after getting the victim’s statement. Rape becoming a regular crime
Rape incidents continue to take place even after the government amended the law making death penalty the highest punishment for the crime.
Last month, a police headquarters report said 26,695 rape cases had been filed across the country in the last five years.
Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) data show that 1,018 children were raped last year, but only 683 police cases were filed. Also, 116 victims were 6 years old or below.
Overall, 1,627 rape cases were reported last year and 53 of the victims were killed by the perpetrators while 14 took their own lives, the data showed.
Also read: Police HQ: 26,695 rape cases filed in 5 yrs, with notable jump since 2019
The original number is believed to be higher as most victims don’t report incidents of sexual assault fearing for their safety and social stigmatisation.
Following days of protests against sexual violence against women across Bangladesh, the government introduced death penalty for rape in October last year. In November, the Parliament passed the necessary amendment.
Rape epidemic: 2 held over gang-rape of Pabna woman
Police arrested two youths Sunday for "gang-raping" a homemaker in Pabna's Chatmohar upazila.
The arrestees were identified as Atikur Rahman, 26, and Abdul Halim, 30.
Sajib Shahrin, assistant superintendent of Chatmohar circle police, said: "The accused grabbed the homemaker, forced her into the nearby garden and raped her as she went outside at 8pm. They fled the scene as the woman's husband rushed to spot hearing her scream."
As the victim's husband filed a case over in the incident in the morning, police carried out a raid to nab Atikur and Abdul, Sajib said.
Also read: Housewife ‘gang-raped’ in Patuakhali
The victim was sent to the hospital for a medical test, he added.
Bangladesh's rape epidemic
Bangladesh is facing a 'rape epidemic' despite recent government approval of the death penalty for the crime - not that evidence ever suggested it would have the desired effect.
Earlier last month, a police headquarters report said 26,695 rape cases had been filed across the country in the last five years.
Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) data shows that 1,018 children were raped last year alone, but only 683 police cases were filed. Also, 116 victims were 6 years old or below.
Also read: Bangladesh introduces death penalty for rape
Overall, 1,627 rape cases were reported last year and 53 of the victims were killed by the perpetrators while 14 took their own lives, the data showed.
However, ASK's data was likely just the tip of the iceberg, according to aid agencies, who report that most women are too afraid to report rape.
In October 2020, the country was rocked by protests after a woman was attacked and raped in Noakhali.
Also read: Police HQ: 26,695 rape cases filed in 5 yrs, with notable jump since 2019
In November last year, Bangladesh introduced the death penalty for rape, following days of protests against sexual violence against women in several cities across Bangladesh.
But human rights organisations say the move will not solve the country's rape crisis, as victims of sex assault are often stigmatised in society.
Govt must stand trial in people’s court: Fakhrul
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday warned that the current government must be tried by the people’s court for the violation of human rights and indulgence in enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.