Rape, Abduction: Tufan Sarkar gets bail from Bogura court

Suspended Sramik League leader Tufan Sarkar was granted bail yesterday by a tribunal in Bogura.

He was accused of raping a girl and then torturing her and her mother in order to silence them. He was also accused of shaving the head of the girl and her mother. Images of the woman and her daughter shocked the nation in 2017.

Tufan was the convener of Bogura Sramik League.

The women and children repression tribunal granted him bail yesterday.

Prosecutor Naresh Mukherjee said, "The High Court fixed six months for disposal of the case. The [Bogura] court granted him bail since the case has not been disposed of in three years. However, I strongly oppose this bail."

Tufan's Lawyer Abdul Mannaf said, " The court granted the bail on the basis of the victim's and her mother's statements."

He added that their statements went in favour of the accused.

Tufan had earlier got bail in a separate case filed for torturing, he said.

On July 17, 2017, Tufan allegedly abducted a girl from her home and raped her. He then reportedly asked his party cadres and then Bogura municipality woman councillor Marzia Akter to make sure everything was kept secret.

They picked up the girl and her mother on July 26 and tortured them for four hours and shaved their heads.

Later, the victim's mother filed a rape case against 10 people and a torture case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act-2000 against 13 people, including Tufan, his wife Asha Sarkar, and Asha's elder sister.

Police arrested Tufan on July 29, 2017.

On October 10, 2017, police pressed charges against the 13 accused, including Tufan.