2 minor boys tied up, beaten over theft charge in Kushtia

Police have arrested two people, including a woman, in a case filed for torturing two minor boys by tying them down with a tree from Kushtia's Kumarkhali upazila. Sources at Kumarkhali police station said they had arrested one of the main accused Tanzil and his mother-in-law Rokeya Khatun from Char Mandalpara area on Wednesday night. According to the case statement, Tanzil, 42, and his friend Mir Akkas forcefully picked up two seven-year-old boys Jewel and Asif from their respective residences in area in the afternoon on Wednesday, alleging the duo of stealing a cellphone handset. As the boys denied the allegations, they were tied up with a mango tree in front of the house of Tanzil's in-laws. The two men later freed Asif after taking Tk2,000 from his family members, but gave a good beating to Jewel. At one point of the torture, Jewel fell seriously ill. He was admitted in Kushtia General Hospital in the evening. The hospital's Medical Officer Hussain Mohammad Shihab said there are marks of blood clots on different parts of the minor's body. Kumarkhali police station Officer-in-Charge Abdul Khalek said Robjel Khan, elder brother of Jewel, filed a case in this connection on the same night. Police had acted promptly and arrested Tanzil and his mother-in-law from the village on Wednesday night. However, the other accused, Mir Akkas, has been at large.