'Kidnapper' Marjina remanded

Schoolteacher Marjina Begum, arrested on charge of kidnapping four girls from Motijheel, was placed on a two-day remand yesterday.

Police returned three of the abducted girls -- Nasima, 7, Soma, 7, and Bilkis Chhabi,8, -- to their parents and the other girl -- Mother Teresa, 6, -- to Mahila Ainjibi Samity as nobody claimed her.

Marjina admitted before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, Dhaka yesterday to taking the girls to her residence but said she had no ill motives.

"I took them home as I do not have any children," she told the court.

The investigating officer of the case said Marjina illegally kept the children in her house and she might be involved in international child trafficking.

Soma's father Abdul Hye filed a petition on behalf of the parents to get back their children.

The court immediately granted the petition and the children were handed to their parents.

Teresa could not tell the court her parents' names and addresses. A lawyer of Mahila Ainjibi Samity submitted a petition to take custody of her and the court granted it.

Marjina did her masters in sociology from Dhaka University in 1981 and joined Motijheel Model High School.

She got divorced in 1991 and has been living at 107, Shantinagar since then. She owns a saree shop, Hiramon Saree Bitan, at Mouchak Market.

Marjina picked three children from the Motijheel AGB Colony recently but one of them, Nasima, managed to escape on Wednesday.

Three days later, Nasima identified Marjina as the 'kidnapper' and police rescued the children from her residence the same day.