Women under threat
Khadiza Begum Nargis, a second year student of Sylhet Government Women's College, was stabbed gruesomely by Badrul Islam, whose studentship was cancelled from Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) upon committing such an act that leads to grievous physical injury to the girl.
Badrul delivered a confessional statement before the Sylhet Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Umme Saraban Tahura whereupon he was found guilty for the attempt of murder. While on her way home from college, Khadiza, daughter of Mashuk Miah, a resident of Hausa village in Sadar upazila, was hit on the head with a machete which ruptured her brain tissues and damaged the cortex of her skull causing severe harm to the brain.
Article 36 which falls under part three of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ensures the right to free movement of all of its citizens that is among one of the several fundamental rights guaranteed by the state. Thus Badrul's behavior to disrupt her movement and causing injury with an attempt to murder is without doubt unconstitutional and an evident infringement of her fundamental rights.
The use of a machete to cause bodily harm is considered as a “grievous hurt” under the sixth ground of section 320 of the Penal Code of 1860, which is distinguishable from normal bodily harm termed specifically as “hurt” in the previous section of the Code. According to section 326 of the aforementioned Code, whoever voluntarily causes grievous hurt by means of any instrument for shooting, stabbing or cutting, or any which, used as a weapon of offence, is likely to cause death, shall be punished with imprisonment for life or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
For a country that is acknowledged on a global scale for its emerging women leadership roles in almost every sector that helps run Bangladesh, it is indeed essential to ensure safety of women both inside and outside their homes. A human chain was held in protest of the hacking by her friends and family immediately after the incident took place.
It was reported by family sources that Khadiza was previously approached with proposals from Badrul. But he was rejected by her. It is to be noted that there is still inadequacy in the provisions of the 'Nari o Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain, 2000' which contains no mention of any provision that deals with situations involving intricacies such as this aforesaid incident.
Badrul was serving as a lodging tutor at the victim's family house but failed to meet an average person's expected level of decency, who not only tried to exercise his authority over the twenty three year old but in order to get back at her took up contemptible means so as to prove it . In the current status quo this is a recurring scenario, especially in the outskirts of cities where there is a prevailing male dominance in society and a deeply rooted patriarchal mindset instilled its population. Badrul was no exception to this, but the extent of his actions portrays the dire need for a social and legal reform in combating the helplessness of women in our society.
Nabila Rubaiyat
Student of Law , University of Dhaka
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