Caught in legal limbo: Years of delays deny justice for rape, murder victims
According to statistics from Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), 44 rape cases were filed between January and April this year following several widely discussed incidents. Yet there has been little visible progress in most of those cases.
Highlights:
- Over 1.5 lakh cases remain pending in courts nationwide
- About 24% cases pending for more than five years
- 101 special tribunals handle 1,800 cases each on average
- Most rape cases remain stuck at trial and witness stages
- Medical and DNA report delays hold up investigations
- Poor families abandon cases amid mounting legal costs
- Appeal delays leave victims waiting years after verdicts
On 25 August 2017, the gang rape and murder of college student Zakia Sultana Rupa on a moving bus in Tangail's Madhupur shocked the nation and sparked widespread demands for justice.
Less than six months later, on 12 February 2018, a Tangail court sentenced bus driver Habibur Rahman and helpers Shamim, Akram and Jahangir to death. Supervisor Safar Ali was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined Tk1 lakh.
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But nearly nine years after the crime, the case has yet to reach a final conclusion.
The High Court, on 27 January last year, commuted the death sentences of the four convicts to life imprisonment while upholding Safar's sentence. The convicts subsequently appealed to the Appellate Division.
Defence lawyer Md Ahsan Ullah told The Business Standard that the hearing on the appeal has not yet begun.
The prolonged legal process has left Rupa's family frustrated and increasingly uncertain about whether justice will ever be fully served.
Rupa's elder brother, Hafizur Rahman, recently told the media that the family was disappointed with the High Court verdict.
He also said a court order directing that the Chhoya Paribahan bus involved in the crime be handed over to the family as compensation has yet to be implemented.
Rupa's case is far from unique. Across the country, trials and appeals in rape and violence against women and children cases often remain unresolved for years.
More than a year has passed since the rape and murder of 8-year-old Asiya in Magura, a case that prompted the interim government to amend the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act by requiring investigations to be completed within 15 days and trials within 90 days.
On 17 May 2025, a tribunal sentenced accused Hitlu Sheikh to death and acquitted two others. However, both the convict's appeal and the mandatory death reference hearing remain pending before the High Court.
Asiya's mother, Ayesha Khatun, said she fears further delays could ultimately benefit the accused.
Meanwhile, more than a decade has passed since Sohagi Jahan Tonu was raped and killed inside Cumilla Cantonment on 20 March 2016; the investigation has yet to be completed.
Procedural delays stall justice
According to statistics from Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), 44 rape cases were filed between January and April this year following several widely discussed incidents. Yet there has been little visible progress in most of those cases.
The broader judicial picture suggests why.
According to Supreme Court administration data, as of 30 March, around 151,000 cases were pending in the Appellate Division, High Court Division and tribunals across the country.
Of these, about 41,000 cases have remained unresolved for more than five years, meaning over 24% of pending cases have been awaiting disposal for at least half a decade.
Cases involving rape and violence against women are heard in the country's 101 Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunals.
On average, each tribunal is burdened with around 1,800 cases. Legal experts and court observers say the number of tribunals remains inadequate compared with the volume of cases.
The backlog extends to the higher courts as well. Around 1,000 appeals are awaiting disposal in the Appellate Division, while approximately 8,000 appeals remain pending in the High Court Division.
Research conducted by Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF) on 25 rape cases filed over the past five years found that most remain stuck at the trial or witness deposition stage.
According to the study, hearings are frequently postponed because witnesses fail to appear.
In many cases, victims' families become frustrated by repeated delays and stop attending court. Poor families often abandon legal proceedings altogether because they can no longer bear the financial burden.
Last year, amendments to the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000, shortened the timeline by requiring investigations to be completed within 15 days instead of 90 and trials within 90 days.
Cases involving rape, dowry-related torture and murder, abduction, sexual harassment and abetment to suicide under the law also contain provisions for holding relevant officials accountable if investigations and trials are not completed within the prescribed timeframe.
A monitoring cell was formed following High Court directives to ensure such accountability.
Following the amendment, a small number of cases, including the rape and murder case of child Asiya, were concluded in trial courts within one to two months.
However, those cases are now awaiting appeal hearings in the High Court.
Rights activists and legal experts say the mechanism has remained largely ineffective.
Where the system stalls
Experts point out that while strict deadlines exist at the trial stage, there is no specific timeframe for disposing of appeals in higher courts.
As a result, even after a verdict is delivered, victims and their families often face years of additional waiting.
People involved in different stages of the judicial process, including victims and their families, say delays occur at almost every step.
After a case is filed, obtaining medical certificates and DNA reports – both crucial pieces of evidence in rape cases – often takes considerable time. Delays in these reports frequently hold up the submission of charge sheets.
Once a trial begins, hearing dates are often set months apart despite legal provisions requiring continuous proceedings. Producing witnesses also remains a major challenge. Many witnesses are unwilling to testify due to fear, insecurity or social pressure.
Some of the longest delays occur in securing testimony from doctors and investigating officers. When officials are transferred to other districts, obtaining their depositions can take years.
Legal experts argue that the growing number of sexual violence cases requires a corresponding increase in the number of tribunals if the objectives of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act are to be achieved.
They also stress the need to make the monitoring mechanism overseen by the Law Ministry, Home Ministry and Supreme Court more effective.
Former District and Sessions Judge Moidul Islam said the timeframe for investigations and trials had recently been reduced and the number of tribunals increased, but the measures were still insufficient given the volume of cases.
"If judges had fewer cases to deal with, they could devote more attention to disposing of cases quickly. But that is not happening," he said.
He also noted that a significant number of false cases are filed under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, which contributes to the overall backlog.
"Just as it is the responsibility of judges to identify false cases, lawyers also have a responsibility in this regard," he said.
Following the recent rape and murder of child Ramisa in the capital, Law Minister Asaduzzaman told reporters that the government would take steps to reduce the backlog in the country's judicial system.
For thousands of victims and their families, however, the larger challenge still remains unchanged: obtaining justice within the timeframes promised by law.
