15-year-old newlywed girl found dead in Kushtia; husband and in-laws absconding on murder charge
Police say injury marks were found on the body
Police have recovered the dead body of a 15-year-old newlywed, Samiha Khatun, just six months after her marriage in Kushtia's Kumarkhali upazila.
The body was recovered from the Mirzapur area of Shelaidaha union around 10:30am today (16 August) and taken to the police station.
Samiha was the wife of Jibon Hossain, 22, a resident of the same village.
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Relatives alleged that Samiha was beaten to death by her husband Jibon, father-in-law Saheb Ali, and mother-in-law Nazma Khatun over a family dispute. They claim the family then tried to stage the death as a suicide by hanging the body from a ceiling inside the house. Since then, all of her in-laws have been absconding.
Sub-inspector (SI) Prokash Chandra Bachhar of the Kumarkhali Police Station said, "We found injury marks on the body. As it is suspicious, the body has been sent to the Kushtia General Hospital morgue after the post mortem. The actual cause of death will be known once we receive the post-mortem report. The husband and in-laws have been absconding since the incident."
Sub-Inspector Prokash Chandra Bachhar of Kumarkhali Police Station said, "We found injury marks on the body. As the death appears suspicious, the body has been sent to Kushtia General Hospital morgue after the post mortem."
The actual cause of death will be determined once the post-mortem report is received, said the SI.
According to police and family members, Samiha and Jibon got married six months ago after a relationship. Since their marriage, there had been frequent arguments over household matters.
On Friday night (15 August), Samiha reportedly had an argument with her husband and in-laws, which escalated into a severe beating. The family claims her body has various signs of injury.
On Saturday morning, relatives were informed that Samiha had allegedly committed suicide. When they arrived, none of her in-laws were at home.
Wailing beside the body at the police station, Samiha's elder sister, Sakiba Khatun, said, "Jibon forced Samiha into marriage after their affair. Since they got married, they have been fighting constantly because we couldn't give them furniture. They killed her over that dispute and then hanged her body. We will file a case."
Samiha's aunt, Razia Khatun, also alleged, "There are marks of beating all over her body, and blood is coming from her feet. It is very clear that she was murdered. We want justice."
