The girl’s family accepted the verdict of an arbitration which sentenced him to being beaten with shoes for the alleged criminal offence
A Chhatra League leader was beaten with shoes by his superior after a community arbitration sentenced him to the humiliation for allegedly attempting to rape a nine-year-old girl in Comilla.
The arbitration had taken place soon after the alleged attempt of rape in the Bagmara South union of Comilla’s Lalmai upazila on Monday.
The girl’s parents expressed their contentment with the arbitrators’ decision thus had not taken any legal actions against the criminal offence.
After the accused, Joynal Abedin Joy, vice-president of Comilla Dakshin Zila Chhatra League, was humiliated because of the rape attempt, the video of the humiliation went viral on Facebook. However, Joy denied the allegations against him.
Lalmai police station Officer-in-Charge Md Ayub said: “I have learnt about the incident from Facebook posts, but no complaint was made regarding the matter. Actions will be taken if a complaint is filed.”
Mahbubur Rahman Rocket, cultural affairs secretary of Lalmai upazila unit Awami League, also one of the arbitrators, said: “Locals had been beating up Joy accusing him of sexual harassment.”
Rocket approached the angry mob and had beaten Joy with a shoe as punishment as he is like Joy’s guardian due to being activists of related groups, according to Rocket.
Bagmara South Union Parishad Member Ratan and several others present at the arbitration said Joy has a pharmacy in Chengahata Chowhmuni area. When the girl came to his fathers’s tea stall near the pharmacy, Joy called her to his shop and attempted to rape her. Locals rescued the girl as she clinched her clothes and screamed.
An upazila unit Awami League leader said Joy kissed and groped the girl.
Activists of local Chhatra League, Jubo League and Awami League shared the video where Joy was beaten with shoes and demanded he be expelled from the organization.
Lokman Hossain Rubel, general secretary of Comilla Dakshin Zila Chhatra League said: “The individual should be held responsible for the crime not the whole group,” adding that they requested Chhatra League’s central committee to expel Joy for his reported crime.”
According to the Prevention of Women and Children Repression Act 2000, the punishment of such a sexual offence is minimum 3 years and maximum 10 years in prison.
