Schoolgirl abducted 2 weeks after getting threat

A tenth grader was abducted in Kurigram's Phulbari upazila on Wednesday evening, just over two weeks after posters saying that the "girl of the family" would be picked up and converted to Islam were found pinned to trees near her home.

A resident of Anantapur village, home to around 30 Hindu families including the victim's, filed a general diary with police on September 4 about the threats.

The abduction took place around 5:00pm on Wednesday when the 15-year-old was returning home from a coaching centre.

Her father filed a complaint yesterday morning with Phulbari Police Station accusing one Alinur Rahman of kidnapping, said Nawabur Rahman, officer-in-charge of the police station.

Locals and police said Alinur, 32, a known drug smuggler from the same village, was behind the abduction.

Speaking to The Daily Star, the victim's father said, "My daughter is very gentle. She is dedicated to her studies. She was on her way home from the coaching centre when Alinur and his cohorts abducted her.

"They are keeping my daughter somewhere," he said.

Police and locals said the Hindu community members in the village were facing threats.

Between the night of September 2 and the morning of September 3, the posters were pinned to trees in the village.

They read, "The girl of this house will be picked up and converted to Islam."

Ranjit Chandra, who filed the general diary with Phulbari Police Station regarding the threats, told The Daily Star, "If police had investigated into the incident sincerely, the girl would not have been abducted."

The posters were later removed following an order by Phulbari Upazila Nirbahi Officer Rehenuma Tarannum.

OC Nawabur claimed that they investigated the GD properly and watched over the village.

"We are trying our level best to rescue the victim unharmed," he told The Daily Star.