Mother raped while child held at knifepoint in Panchagarh, 4 arrested

A group of men raped a 28-year-old woman in Panchagarh Sadar upazila while  holding her two-year-old son at knifepoint.

The incident took place late Friday night (4 July) near a tea garden in the Surivita area of Sadar union. 

Locals found the woman unconscious and informed the police through the national emergency helpline 999. 

The survivor and her child were rescued and admitted to Panchagarh Modern Sadar Hospital.

The woman filed a case with Sadar Police Station yesterday afternoon (5 July) under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, naming four individuals and accusing two others who remain unidentified.

Police arrested Joni Islam, 27, Biplob Hossain, 25, Makshedul Islam, 33 from Jagaddal Bazar area, and Sadequl Islam, 28, from Bodinajat village in Satmera union.

According to the case statement, the woman was travelling from Jutmill area in Boda upazila to her father's house in Sadar upazila with her sick child in a battery-run auto-rickshaw. 

When she reached the Surivita area, a familiar rickshaw driver called out her name and stopped her. Six men then forced her into a nearby tea garden, where they held a knife to her son's throat and raped her one by one. 

The woman eventually lost consciousness.

"I was helpless when they threatened my child with a knife. I recognised four of them. Two others were unknown. Now I am being pressured by people close to me to reach a settlement. I want justice," the survivor told reporters.

Dr Abul Kashem, residential medical officer at Panchagarh Modern Sadar Hospital, said, "She was brought in unconscious. Samples have been collected for medical tests. She is currently in stable condition."

Officer-in-Charge of Sadar Police Station Abdullah Hil Zaman said, "Responding to a 999 call, police rescued the woman and her child. Based on her statement, we have arrested four suspects and are continuing efforts to arrest the remaining two."