Verdict due today in Pallabi child rape, murder case
The verdict in the case over the rape and brutal murder of an eight-year-old girl in Pallabi, Dhaka, will be delivered today, Sunday.
Judge Masrur Salekin of the Dhaka Metropolitan Tribunal for the Prevention of Violence Against Children will pronounce the verdict at 11:00 am.
Earlier, arguments from both the prosecution and the defence concluded in the case on Thursday. Following the hearing, the court fixed 7 June for delivering the verdict. The child was raped and murdered on 19 May. Accordingly, the verdict is set to be delivered today, Sunday just 19 days after the incident.
Verdict after 19 days: What the prosecution and defence told the court
During Thursday's hearing, the prosecution identified accused Sohel Rana as guilty and sought the maximum punishment under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act.
Referring to Sohel Rana's alleged assistance in the offence and failure to prevent it, the prosecution also sought legal punishment for accused Sapna Akter. The prosecutor also read out before the court the testimonies given by the child's father and mother.
On the day of the incident (19 May), Sohel Rana, a resident of the apartment from which the child's dismembered body was recovered in a building in Pallabi, fled by breaking the grille of a bathroom window before the body was found. His wife, Sapna Akter, was detained from the flat at the time. Later that evening, Sohel Rana was arrested in Fatullah, Narayanganj.
The child's father filed a case with Pallabi Police Station over the incident.
On 20 May, accused Sohel Rana and Sapna Akter gave confessional statements before the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Aminul Islam Junaid.
On 1 June, the tribunal framed charges against Sohel Rana and Sapna Akter and ordered the trial to begin. The court subsequently fixed today for delivery of the verdict after the framing of charges, recording of evidence, examination of the accused, and conclusion of arguments.
“We have sought the maximum punishment for the accused in accordance with the law. The tribunal will deliver its verdict at its own discretion,” prosecutor Azizur Rahman Dulu told Prothom Alo.
Note: In accordance with the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act and Prothom Alo’s editorial policy, the names and identities of the child victim and her parents have not been disclosed in this report.