There are hardly any words to condemn the horrendous gang rape that took place recently in Sylhet. It is alarming that a woman can be raped inside a dormitory of an educational institution, an establishment meant to enlighten people.
According to the media, the husband and wife were sitting in their car in front of the main gate of MC College on Friday night. Five youths surrounded them and forced them out of the car. Three of the youths dragged the woman to a room in Block 7 of the dormitory. The other two held her husband hostage in the car. Later, the police rescued the couple from there at 10:00pm.
The room of the dormitory has been occupied by Chhatra League since a clash between Chhatra League and Chhatra Shibir in 2012. A team of police from Shah Paran police station searched the room next to the caretaker’s bungalow to nab the culprits in connection with the rape. They recovered a pipe gun, four machetes and two iron pipes. However, till the writing of this editorial, the police could not detain anyone.
The dormitory was closed due to the coronavirus outbreak. So how did the Chhatra League members continue to occupy the room? The principal of the college said, “I heard that the leaders (of Chhatra League) were there. I don’t know anything else. I’ve asked the police and RAB (Rapid Action Battalion) to arrest the responsible ones and punish them.” His statement simply aids and abets the occupiers of the room. When he heard that the BCL leaders had occupied the room, why did he not take initiative to evict them?
A case has been filed against nine persons following the gang rape. Six of the accused are Saifur Rahman, 28, Tarequl Islam, 28, Shah Mahbubur Rahman alias Rony, 25, Arjun Laskar, 25, Rabiul Islam, 25, and Mahfuzur Rahman alias Masum, 25. Among them, Tareq and Rabiul are outsiders. The remaining six are former students of MC College. On the other hand, a case has been filed under the Arms Act in connection with the recovery of weapons from the ‘room occupied by the BCL (Bangladesh Chhatra League)’. The only accused in the case is M Saifur Rahman, a BCL activist.
Though the BCL activists have been harassing and terrorising people at the MC College for many years, no action has been taken. They used to share the dormitory with Shibir activists before setting it on fire. After that they established their full control. They committed all sorts of crimes including murder, rape, robbery, yaba trade and drug addiction. And they have been powerful backing. Generally speaking, such crimes would lead to expulsion, but there is no one to expel the Sylhet Chhatra League members.
Due to the backing of the college authorities and the indifference of the of the law enforcement agencies, the leaders and activists of Chhatra League have become a wayward and uncontrollable force. The leaders of Chhatra League and its parent organisation Awami League, time to time, 'advise' the opposition to come to the path of democracy. If their good advice would start at home, then perhaps the BCL activists in Sylhet would not have been involved in such crimes like murder and rape. A woman would not have been gang raped. Where is people’s security if a person falls victim to such atrocities in a college campus during coronavirus outbreak?
The victim is in a critical mental condition. She requires proper treatment as well as mental care. The government must bear the medical expenses.
It is unfortunate that no one has been arrested even after two days after the incident. The culprits must be arrested and exemplary punishment must be ensured.