Dhaka, May 17 (IANS) A Bangladesh court on Saturday sentenced one accused in the Magura child rape and murder case to death, and acquitted the remaining three. However, the family of the victim expressed dissatisfaction over the verdict.
The judgment came months after the eight-year-old child succumbed to injuries following the sexual assault, local media reported.
Judge Md Zahid Hasan of the Magura Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal passed the order sentencing the prime accused in the case, Hitu Sheikh, aged 50, to death.
The victim’s mother who filed the case has expressed dissatisfaction to accept the acquittal of the other three accused in the rape and murder case.
“Although Hitu Sheikh has been sentenced to death, the other three accused have been acquitted. We cannot accept this verdict,” a leading Bangladeshi newspaper, The Dhaka Tribune, quoted her as saying.
“The plaintiff is not satisfied with this verdict. Therefore, we will decide through discussion whether to appeal this verdict in the higher court,” said Monirul Islam Mukul, the public prosecutor.
According to reports, the tragic incident occurred in early March when the young victim was raped at her sister’s house in Magura.
The child, who sustained critical injuries, was initially treated in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Dhaka Medical College Hospital before being transferred to CMH Hospital for advanced care.
The 8-year-old rape victim passed away on March 13 at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka, after fighting for her life for a week.
The brutal incident sparked protests across the country against the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, demanding justice and stricter measures to curb violence against women and children.
Women in Bangladesh took to the streets demanding justice for rape, stricter punishment for offenders, and the resignation of Home Affairs Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury.
Meanwhile, on Friday several thousand women thronged Dhaka, marching under “Women’s March for Solidarity” demanding that the interim government act against the threats women and minority communities face in the country.
They also alleged a misinformation campaign against the Women’s Affairs Reform Commission, local media reported.
The demonstrators said that women continue to face daily harassment, exclusion from decision-making, and online abuse, aimed at deterring their political participation.
With the Yunus-led interim government assuming power in the South Asian nation last year, several cases of sexual violence against women have been reported.
–IANS
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