Attempted rape: UP chairman fines victim Tk 1 lakh in arbitration
In a shocking incident, the victim of an attempted rape was fined Tk one lakh by village arbitrators at Baliadanga of Tebaria union in Natore on Tuesday night.
The victim's father was fined Tk 1,000 for coming late to the arbitration.
The arbitrators handed down the "punishment", alleging the woman had an affair with a man of different faith, who attempted to rape her. The family was given a month's time to manage the money.
Tipped off that an unlawful arbitration was taking place, police raided the village and arrested two -- Ruhul Amin and Sobhan Ali.
The two, however, were released yesterday evening, as no case was filed in this regard, said Jahangir Alam, officer-in-charge of Natore Sadar Police Station.
"If the victim chooses to file a case, then we will proceed further," he added.
Natore Superintendent of Police Liton Kumar Saha said, "No one has the authority to arbitrate rape cases, it is against the law."
On May 29, one Amar Kumar, 33, attempted to rape the woman. When she began screaming, locals rushed to the spot, caught Amar and handed him over to police.
OC Jahangir Alam said after locals handed Amar, the victim filed a rape case the next day and Amar was later sent to jail through court.
On Tuesday night, Union Parishad Chairman Omar Ali Pradhan called for a village arbitration, where the victim and her father were summoned.
Local arbitrators, Baliadanga village chief Abdul Hakim and the chairman, fined the victim and her father.
Meanwhile, before attending the arbitration, the victim alerted police, who sent a constable from the district special branch to visit the spot. The constable, Al Amin, recorded the arbitration and showed it to SP Liton Kumar, who then sent a police team to the spot to arrest the arbitrators around 11:00pm.
However, Pradhan and Hakim had fled the spot by then.
Asked, Pradhan said the victim's husband, who is an expatriate, wanted to pay Tk one lakh to "settle the issue".
"We were going to use that money to build a bathroom in a local mosque. We were considering that money as the fine during the arbitration."
Natore District Commissioner Mohammad Shahreaz said, "The chairman is a part of the district administration. There is no way he can be involved in an arbitration for a rape incident. If we find his involvement, we will take legal action."
Apart from UP chairman, Pradhan is also a member of the executive committee of the Natore district Awami League and the president of the Tebaria Union Awami League.
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