bdnews24.com :
In its judgment on the murder of Nusrat Jahan Rafi, a Feni court has said the memory of the madrasa student, who was burnt to death in reprisal for protesting against sexual abuse, will endure as an inspiration due to her ‘sacrifice’ in defence of the sanctity of womanhood.
Judge Mamunur Rashid of the Woman and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal sentenced 16 people to death in the much publicised case on Thursday. Nusrat, an Alim candidate at the Sonagazi Islamia Fazil Madrassa, had accused the headteacher, SM Siraj-Ud-Doula, of sexually abusing her.
He was subsequently arrested on Mar 27 in a case filed by her mother. But on Apr 6, Nusrat was set alight by four burqa-clad people, who had their faces covered by niqab and hands with gloves on the roof of the madrasa for her refusal to withdraw the case against Siraj, who allegedly orchestrated the attack from jail. Nusrat protested even after it could be easily assumed that she would face difficulties if she protested against sexual abuse by such an influential man as the principal of her madrasa. Even police harassed her during the investigation into the sex abuse charges, but she continued to fight her battle. She ran to the rooftop of the building after hearing that one of her friends, a witness in the sex abuse case, was being beaten up. Her brother Mahmudul Hasan Noman filed a case on the incident on Apr 8 naming eight people, including the principal as the main accused. Nusrat died five days later on Apr 10 in a Dhaka hospital. The Police Bureau of Investigation subsequently pressed charges against 16 people in court and all of the accused were convicted of murder on Thursday.
The verdict notes the incident has cast a shadow over the Sonagazi Islamia Fazil Madrassa, a prominent educational institution in the district, and has ‘shaken the conscience of the world’ “Nusrat Jahan Rafi’s shining sacrifice to protect the dignity of womanhood makes her immortal. She will live on as an inspiration,” continued the judge.
“At the same time, the defendants’ actions certainly bring shame on humanity. As such, they are deserving of an exemplarily harsh punishment.”
The convicts were handed the capital punishment under Section 4(1)/30 of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act and fined Tk 100,000 each.
In its judgment on the murder of Nusrat Jahan Rafi, a Feni court has said the memory of the madrasa student, who was burnt to death in reprisal for protesting against sexual abuse, will endure as an inspiration due to her ‘sacrifice’ in defence of the sanctity of womanhood.
Judge Mamunur Rashid of the Woman and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal sentenced 16 people to death in the much publicised case on Thursday. Nusrat, an Alim candidate at the Sonagazi Islamia Fazil Madrassa, had accused the headteacher, SM Siraj-Ud-Doula, of sexually abusing her.
He was subsequently arrested on Mar 27 in a case filed by her mother. But on Apr 6, Nusrat was set alight by four burqa-clad people, who had their faces covered by niqab and hands with gloves on the roof of the madrasa for her refusal to withdraw the case against Siraj, who allegedly orchestrated the attack from jail. Nusrat protested even after it could be easily assumed that she would face difficulties if she protested against sexual abuse by such an influential man as the principal of her madrasa. Even police harassed her during the investigation into the sex abuse charges, but she continued to fight her battle. She ran to the rooftop of the building after hearing that one of her friends, a witness in the sex abuse case, was being beaten up. Her brother Mahmudul Hasan Noman filed a case on the incident on Apr 8 naming eight people, including the principal as the main accused. Nusrat died five days later on Apr 10 in a Dhaka hospital. The Police Bureau of Investigation subsequently pressed charges against 16 people in court and all of the accused were convicted of murder on Thursday.
The verdict notes the incident has cast a shadow over the Sonagazi Islamia Fazil Madrassa, a prominent educational institution in the district, and has ‘shaken the conscience of the world’ “Nusrat Jahan Rafi’s shining sacrifice to protect the dignity of womanhood makes her immortal. She will live on as an inspiration,” continued the judge.
“At the same time, the defendants’ actions certainly bring shame on humanity. As such, they are deserving of an exemplarily harsh punishment.”
The convicts were handed the capital punishment under Section 4(1)/30 of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act and fined Tk 100,000 each.
