Woman 'attacked, beaten' while feeding street dogs in Banasree

A woman has alleged that several people beat and harassed her for about half an hour in the capital's Banasree area on 22 September after she went there to feed street dogs.

Sumaiya Rahman, who filed a complaint with Khilgaon Police Station over the incident, said she sustained injuries to her face, under her eyes, hands and other parts of her body.

Yesterday (23 September) afternoon, police took Sumaiya to the spot after receiving her complaint. She alleged that local BNP leader Mainul, his brother and wife were also there and behaved aggressively towards her, repeatedly questioning her about the incident.

"Mainul's brother repeatedly came towards me aggressively. My eye has turned bluish from the beating. He kept making comments about me after seeing the injury. Even after that, they used various abusive words," Sumaiya told The Business Standard last night.

"I am very scared. The way they attacked me, the attackers would not have hesitated to kill me," she said.

Sumaiya said she feared that speaking about the assault could lead to further pressure on her locally.

How the incident unfolded

Sumaiya said she went to Lal Mia Goli on Road 8/3 in F Block, Banasree, around 10pm on 22 September to feed several street dogs. She regularly feeds dogs in the area.

While she was feeding the dogs in front of a clothing shop, some of them climbed onto the shop's stairs. A boy aged around 10 to 12 told her to move away, she said.

According to Sumaiya, an argument broke out, and the boy abused her. When she told him not to behave disrespectfully towards her, another young man, aged around 20 to 22, came out of the shop and punched her in the face, she alleged.

The young man then called others to the spot, she said.

According to Sumaiya, around 50 to 60 people eventually gathered there, with some beating her and others verbally abusing and harassing her. She said the incident continued for about half an hour.

Asif Imtiaz, who was with Sumaiya, also feeds street dogs in the area.

He said they had initially agreed to leave within two minutes after being asked to move away from the front of the shop. However, tensions continued to rise, and Sumaiya was beaten, he said.

As the situation worsened, Asif said he tried to seek help but failed. He then quickly left the area with Sumaiya.

Sumaiya received treatment at Mugda Medical College Hospital yesterday morning. She said she suffered the most serious pain in her jaw and was advised to undergo an X-ray after receiving initial treatment.

"They hit me very badly. They beat me mostly on my back. I somehow managed to escape the area to save my life," she said.

Police yet to identify those involved

After receiving treatment, Sumaiya filed a complaint with Khilgaon Police Station. Police then took her to Lal Mia Goli yesterday afternoon to inspect the scene.

Sumaiya alleged that Mainul, his brother, and wife were present when she returned with police.

She said Mainul's brother repeatedly moved towards her aggressively and questioned her about the incident.

She also said the experience had made her even more frightened despite already being the victim of an assault.

Several locals at the scene declined to comment in detail.

Nuru Hossain, a local resident, confirmed that a woman had been beaten.

He said shop workers had objected to her feeding dogs because the shop premises were being dirtied, leading to an argument between Sumaiya and the shop owner.

Another local, speaking on condition of anonymity, identified the person who allegedly struck Sumaiya first as Shuvo. The resident claimed Shuvo was an associate of local BNP leaders Mainul and Halim and that he later called others to the scene.

The accused could not be reached for comment on the allegations.

Sub-Inspector Azharul Islam, who inspected the scene with Sumaiya, said police had not yet confirmed who was responsible for the assault.

"We inspected the area with the victim. However, it has not yet been confirmed who attacked her," he said.

He also said police had confirmed that Sumaiya was beaten, but were still investigating who was involved. Police have also yet to obtain clear information from locals, he added.