Complete Magura child rape trial in 180 days: HC

Highlights:

• Court also instructs BTRC to make sure child's photos are removed from all media
• Says those publishing the child's photos are breaking the law
• Orders appointment of social welfare officials in Dhaka and Magura
• The officials will oversee protection and medical care of the child and her older sister
• 17 March fixed as the next hearing date on the suo moto orders
• Victim still in critical condition, on ventilator support

The High Court has ordered the trial of the case into the rape of an eight-year-old child in Magura to be completed within 180 days in line with the laws.

The bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury passed the suo motu order today (9 March), and directed the concerned Women and Child Repression Prevention Tribunal to implement it.

According to Section 20(3) of the Women and Child Repression Prevention Act, the trial of such cases must be completed by the Women and Child Repression Prevention Tribunal within 180 days of receiving the case. 

However, lawyers argue that this generally does not happen due to various reasons. It's likely that this is why the High Court has ordered the tribunal to complete the trial within 180 days in line with the law.

The court also directed the government to appoint two separate social welfare officials, one in Dhaka and one in Magura, to oversee the protection and medical care of both the child and her older sister.

The older sister was also married off at the age of 14. Her husband and father-in-law are two of the four accused in the case filed over the brutal rape that has shocked the nation.

Earlier in the day, the same bench ordered the removal of all photos of the eight-year-old rape victim from all types of media, including social media platforms, by 12pm today.

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) was instructed to implement the order immediately.

The court at the time said, "Those who are publishing the child's photos are breaking the law. This is wrong.

"If the photos are not removed within the given time, a new order will be issued."

The court also set 17 March as the next hearing date, said Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Syed Mahsib Hossain -- who moved the court on this issue this morning.

"On that day, the Attorney General's Office will present the implementation status of the orders to the court, and the court will take further action," he told The Business Standard.

Barrister Mahsib brought a newspaper report about the child victim to the court's attention this morning and requested the court to the authorities to ensure the child's safety and medical care. 

"Also, this eight-year-old child was raped by her sisters's husband and father-in-law. In matters like this and related crimes, the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs has failed to carry out its preventative responsibilities.

"I presented the newspaper's report to the court and urged it to hold the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs accountable," said the lawyer.

He further added, "The court then independently issued an order to remove the child's photo."

In addition to these orders, the court has also issued several other suo moto orders and they will be clearly known once the written order is released, added the lawyer.

Critical condition

Meanwhile, the condition of the eight-year-old girl, who was raped last week, remains critical.

She was transferred to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka yesterday afternoon (8 March) for better treatment from Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), where she was on ventilator support, based on the advice of the medical board formed to treat her.

"The child is receiving the best possible medical care as per the advice of the medical board comprising doctors from the gynaecology and anaesthesiology departments of DMCH," DMCH Deputy Director Ashraful Alam said at the time.

Prior to her transfer to CMH, Brig Gen Md Asaduzzaman, director of DMCH, had told reporters, "The child has wounds in her genitals due to brutal torture. Her throat injury is also severe."

According to police and locals, the child went to visit her sister at her in-laws' house last week. The accused, her sister's father-in-law, allegedly raped her while she was sleeping on Wednesday night (5 March). 

After she was with critical injuries, she was first taken to Magura General Hospital before being moved to Faridpur Medical College Hospital.

The child was later admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital in an unconscious state on Thursday evening (6 March). She was unconscious until yesterday afternoon as per the last available information.

Doctors or authorities at CMH are yet to provide an update on the child's physical condition.

Police arrest 4 in rape case

Four of the accused, including her sister's husband and father-in-law, who were already in police custody was shown arrested yesterday over their alleged involvement in the rape case. 

Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Md Mirajul Islam told media that the husband, father-in-law, mother-in-law, and brother-in-law of the victim's sister have been accused. "They were already in police custody and have been shown arrested in the case."

Meanwhile, in the First Information Report, which the police registered as a case at around 3pm yesterday, the child's mother alleged that her eldest daughter's husband helped his father rape the eight-year-old.

She claimed that her daughter's mother-in-law and brother-in-law were also aware of the incident and they even attempted to cover up the matter, reports Prothom Alo. The family also tried to kill the child, alleged the mother.

The four accused have been identified as the victim's sister's father-in-law Hitu Sheikh, 42, husband Sajib Sheikh, 18, mother-in-law Jaheda Khatun, 45, and brother-in-law Ratul Sheikh, 20.

What the case document says

In the case document, the plaintiff [child's mother] stated that on 5 March at around 10pm, the child went to sleep in the same room with her elder sister and her husband after eating dinner. At around 2:30am, the elder sister woke up and saw that her younger sister was lying on the floor.

At that time, the child told her elder sister that she was feeling burning sensation on her genital area. But the elder sister thought that the child was babbling in her sleep.

Then at around 6am, the child again told her sister about the burning sensation. When asked why, she told her sister that when her brother-in-law Sajib Sheikh opened the door at night, her father-in-law Hitu Sheikh grabbed her and took her to his room and raped her.

Magura child rape: 8-year-old moved to CMH as police arrest 4, including her sister's husband, father-in-law

When she tried to scream, he grabbed her throat. Later, he left her on the floor of her sister's room. 

The complaint further states that after learning about the incident, when the child's elder sister went to inform her mother about the matter on her mobile phone, her husband took away her mobile phone and beat her. He threatened to kill the child if she tells anyone about the incident and locked the two sisters in two separate rooms.

In the morning, when a female neighbour named Zohra came to the house, the sister's brother-in-law Ratul Sheikh opened the door. Then, an attempt was made to cure the child by pouring water on the head.

When the child's condition deteriorated around 10:30am, the sister's mother-in-law, with the help of other neighbours, took her to a hospital in Magura. There, the doctors were told that the girl had been strangled.

However, when the doctors and others realised the matter, the mother-in-law fled the hospital. Later, the plaintiff went to the hospital.