Child ‘raped’ in Dhaka

A fifth grader was allegedly raped by, what the victim’s family claim, the brother of a local political leader in Bhatara area of Dhaka last night.

The victim’s brother alleged that one Rashedul Amin Khandkar along with his aides raped his sister after taking her to a nearby building in the area.

They picked up the victim when she was returning to home with her elder sister after paying a visit to a friend’s house around 8:30pm, he told The Daily Star.

On the way back, the victim stopped to buy some titbits from a roadside stall while her elder sister went home, the brother said.

He also alleged that Rashedul is the younger brother of local Awami League Leader Shahid Khandkar.

The victim was admitted to the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OCC) of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) around 2:00am, said Bilkis Begum, coordinator of OCC said.

She has injury marks on her throat and face, she added.

Victim’s father filed a rape case against three-- Rashedul, Shahin, and Nazmul-- with Bhatara Police Station this evening, said Nurul Muttakin, officer-in-charge (OC) of the police station.   

Several teams of Bhatara police were conducting drives in the area to detain the suspect, the OC also said. No arrest was made till filing this report around 8:20pm.