RANGPUR, Jan 17, 2021 (BSS) – A court here today recognised paternal identity of a child of a speech-impaired woman who became pregnant after being raped 12 years ago giving birth to the child in village Hariram of Pirgachha upazila in the district.
The court also sentenced the rapist to life term rigorous imprisonment and fined him Taka one lakh and declared the male child as the heir of the rapist ordering him to provide necessary alimony for his bringing up.
If the rapist has no property, the court instructed the state to bear the necessary cost of the child.
Judge of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-2 of Rangpur, Md. Rokunuzzaman handed down the epoch-making verdict in the courtroom in presence of the convict this afternoon.
The prosecution says the convict is Abul Kalam, (then 35 years old), son of Abdul Jalil of village Harirampur in Pirgachha upazila frequently sexually harassed the speech-impaired young girl (then 18 years old) of the same village till 2008.
When he was forbidden, Kalam got angry and raped the disabled girl in the afternoon of December 1, 2008.
The matter came into light when the girl’s physical changes began after sometime of the rape incident.
When the girl was asked, she identified Abul Kalam in gesture and informed her family members about the rape.
She was admitted to Pirgachha Upazila Health Complex on September 9, 2009 when she became seriously sick after giving birth to the male baby.
The girl’s father later filed a case against Abul Kalam in the court on September 16, 2009 after the rapist refused to admit the rape and recognise his newborn child.
The court ordered Pirgachha police station to accept the case as an FIR and submit an investigation report.
The then Sub-Inspector of Pirgachha police station and Investigating Officer of the case Abdus Samad Sarkar submitted a charge sheet against the accused person on December 25, 2009 after conducting an investigation.
After examining reports of the DNA tests of the child and rapist and nine witnesses during the long hearing period of the case, the court found the accused person guilty and announced the verdict against him today.
Special Public Prosecutor of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-2 of Rangpur Advocate Jahangir Hossain Tuhin stood for the state while Senior Advocate Emdadul Haque defended the accused side.