Bangladesh – Poor Minority Girl Abducted & Gang Raped 7 Days – Health Serious – Call for Justice

Dhaka, 6 May 2008 .
Report submitted by HRCBM-BNC

Allegation: Police denied registering FIR and thus encouraging
criminals to indulge violence against minority women and girls. The incident
depicts how police could be prejudiced and capable of disdaining country’s
stringent “Women and Children Protection Act”.

Miss Mili Rani Malakar, daughter of Shri Khoka Malakar of village Kholadapunia,
under Jokigunj PS of Sylhet was abducted on 24th April and left in a critical
condition of unconscious at Bhattapara Primary School on 1 May late night, 94
miles away from East of Sylhet district Headquaters. Following day, local
people collected fund and sent the victim in a stage of comma to the Osmani
Hospital Sylhet. Doctors of the Hospital say the condition of the patient is
very critical and she was mercilessly gang raped for days together. Mili is
still under the medicare of Osmani Hospital’ ICU and will remain there some
more days. Nobody is allowed to see or talk to her prior local police
permission. Reports published in the local dailies in Dhaka and Sylhet stated
that Mili Rani is the only earning member of the family as her father is blind.
She used to sell vaccine for poultry firms and somehow manage her family with
this meager income . Due to continuous threat from the influential quarters,
hapless blind father or mother couldn’t file a case against the kidnappers and
rapist of their daughter at the local police station . Nobody is speaking out
against this crime fearing retribution, as the kidnapper come from a very
notorious Uion Parisad member Abdul Lalif and his associates. More over,
Officer in charge of Jokiganj D Zaman Milu (88-01713374381) who was told on
leave, the second man in PS reluctantly denied to register the case . The
family is passing hard days with starvation. HRCBM-Bangladesh National Chapter
won’t let go of this injustice & for highlighting the case- there’s an
urgent need to apply pressure on the police staff involved and to the
higher administration in Bangladesh to save a the poor minority girl Miss Mili
Malakar. 

The Annual Report of USCIRF- 2008 on Bangladesh issued on 2 May, Friday in
Washington rightly observed: “Rape is also reportedly a common form of
anti-minority violence, and incidents regarding Hindu women were reported in
2007. The government commonly fails to punish the perpetrators of these acts
against women, since the law enforcement and the judicial systems, especially
at the local level, are vulnerable to corruption, intimidation, and political
interference.”

In 2006, HRCBM filed a writ before Honorable High Court of Bangladesh to
endow Justice to minority victims of hate crime. However, with sheer
disappointment it can be stated that despite the favorable ruling from
Honorable High Court, Government of Bangladesh is yet to comply with the
ruling. Denying to comply with the ruling of it’s highest institution of Justice,
Bangladesh government has again disdained country’s constitution and Justice
system.

Please visit https://www.hrcbm.org/news/writ_HRCBM_Bangladesh_2006.html
to learn more about HRCBM Public benefit Litigation against government of
Bangladesh.