A Dhaka court has framed charges and ordered the commencement of trial against main accused Sohel Rana and his wife Swapna Akhter in a case over the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in the capital’s Pallabi area.
Dhaka Metropolitan Child Violence Prevention Tribunal Judge Masrur Salekin passed the order on Monday after a hearing. The court also fixed June 2 for recording witness testimony.
After the charges were read out, both accused pleaded not guilty. Swapna Akhter also denied any involvement in the incident.
Earlier in the day, the accused were brought to court from jail around 7:30am and kept in the custody of the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court before being produced before the tribunal at 11:10am. The tribunal was later constituted within 15 minutes.
As the accused did not have a lawyer, the Law Ministry appointed Advocate Musa Kalimullah of the Dhaka Bar as state-appointed defence counsel. The hearing was conducted by the public prosecutor on behalf of the state.
On May 24, investigation officer SI Ahiduzzaman of Pallabi Police Station submitted the charge sheet against Sohel Rana and Swapna Akhter. The charge sheet was later accepted by Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ashraful Haque, who issued an order to transfer the case to the Child Violence Prevention Tribunal for trial.
On the same day, the tribunal accepted the charge sheet and fixed June 1 for hearing on framing of charges.
According to the case statement, the victim, an eight-year-old Class II student, went missing on May 19 after leaving home around 9:30am. Later, her shoes were found near the accused’s flat. After breaking open the door, family members and locals found the child’s body inside the room.
Police said the victim’s father filed a case with Pallabi Police Station the same day. Swapna Akhter was arrested before the case was filed, while Sohel Rana was later arrested from Fatulla in Narayanganj. He reportedly confessed to the crime in a judicial statement on May 20. Swapna Akhter was subsequently sent to jail.