A 48-year-old man has been arrested over allegations of repeatedly raping his 11-year-old cousin, a madrasa student, in Chattogram’s Halishahar area.
The accused, identified as Md Zakir Hossain, also known as Bacha Mia, was arrested during a raid by Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)-7 around 9:30pm yesterday (5 November).
He was subsequently handed over to Halishahar Police Station at around 10:30pm.
Confirming the incident, Halishahar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Zainal Abedin Mondol told The Business Standard that the accused had been arrested and produced before the court today (6 November).
He said legal proceedings in the case, filed under Section 9(1) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000, were under way.
According to the child’s family, Zakir exploited their familial relationship to sexually abuse the girl on multiple occasions and threatened to kill her if she disclosed the abuse to anyone.
The child’s mother, Julie Akter, 37, filed a case with Halishahar Police Station on Wednesday night (4 November) under Section 9(1) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000.
According to the first information report (FIR), the accused lured the child to an abandoned house beside a pond near Sundaripara Boro Bari in North Halishahar around 4:30pm on 27 September and sexually assaulted her.
An 80-year-old man, Abul Hashem, reportedly witnessed the incident but could not immediately alert anyone because of age-related health complications.
Later, on the morning of 31 October, Farida Begum, 48, another relative of the child, learned about the incident from Abul Hashem.
When she questioned the girl, the child eventually disclosed the alleged abuse.
Local residents also questioned Zakir after the incident became known in the neighbourhood. According to the FIR, he admitted to the allegations during the questioning.
The complaint further states that Zakir was both the family’s neighbour and the child’s paternal cousin. Her family initially tried to resolve the matter locally, considering family and social sensitivities, but the accused refused to participate in the settlement process and went into hiding.
Family alleges repeated abuse and intimidation
The child’s mother said her daughter regularly visited the accused’s house to play with other children. She later learned that Zakir had allegedly sexually abused her daughter several times in the kitchen of the house.
“From my daughter, I learned that the accused had sexually abused her several times even before the incident on 27 September,” Julie Akter told The Business Standard.
The family also alleged that Zakir continued to intimidate the child after the abuse came to light.
He reportedly waited along her route to and from the madrasa and warned her against disclosing the incidents.
He also threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the abuse, the family alleged.
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