Student gang raped: What sort of society is this?

A college girl was gang raped in Lalbagh, Dhaka, several days ago and the perpetrators left the injured girl in front of Raju Memorial Sculpture on Dhaka University campus. Now a student of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University (BSMRSTU) was gang raped in Gopalganj.

Accompanied by a friend who is also a BSMRSTU student, the she was returning from the helipad in Gopalganj helipad to her quarters in Nabinbagh. Four or five miscreants stopped them and took the girl to a nearby school building and raped her. The incident sparked protest in the campus with student blocking Dhaka-Khulna highway and demonstrating. They withdrew the blockade upon the assurance of the administration later.

These two incidents unfolded the outrageousness of miscreants and the insecurity of women. A university student was raped on the way to her quarters from the campus, and that clearly indicates how bad the law and order situation is. What sort of society are we living in where a university student was gang raped while returning to her residence from the campus?

One the other hand, the government has established one university after another but they did not arrange accommodation for of half of the students. Consequently, a big portion of both male and female students has to stay outside the campus. Boys can be accommodated in any place but this is not possible for girls. Only 700 out of 3,000 female students of BSMRST received accommodation at the resident halls. The remaining female students have to live rented quarters and this is one of main reasons for their insecurity.

What is more a matter of concern is that local people as well as leaders and activists of Bangladesh Chhattra League allegedly attacked the students protesting the rape of their fellow student. Several protesting students were also injured in the attack. It the responsibility of the administration to look into whether students protest causes sufferings to people, not local people and Chhattra League. Where had they been when the student was raped? Does it mean leaders and activists of Chhattra League have a link to the perpetrators?

It is the responsibility of law enforcement agencies to subdue the miscreants. How much are they carry out this duty? Three suspects were arrested and one of them had been committing crimes in the area beforehand. Had the law enforcement agencies not ignored their duty at that time, the girl would have not become the victim of this unwarranted incident. The reaming two suspects are from Harijan community. Families alleged they are innocent and they were arrested to protect the influential people. And, this is serious allegation. Whether they are, in fact, involved in rape or innocent, must be looked into properly. (সত্যিই তাঁরা ধর্ষণের সঙ্গে জড়িত না নিরপরাধ, তা–ও ভালোভাবে খতিয়ে দেখতে হবে।)

Both the deputy commissioner (DC) and the superintendent of police (SP) in Gopalganj are woman. We expect if the male officials do not understand the severity of such inhuman attack on a woman, the DC and the SP would realise it. (একজন নারীর ওপর দুর্বৃত্তদের পাশবিক হামলার অভিঘাত কতটা মারাত্মক, পুরুষ কর্মকর্তারা উপলব্ধি করতে না পারলেও তাঁরা পারবেন আশা করি।)

Arrest all the miscreants immediately and hand over them to court. Give them exemplary punishment so that no one dares commit such crime in future.