2 Juba League leaders held for raping schoolgirl

A teenage girl has been gang-raped in Tarash upazila of Sirajganj allegedly by two local leaders of Juba League, the youth front of Awami League. The victim has been sent to Sirajganj Sadar Hospital for treatment and medical tests. Police arrested the accused – Juba League’s Naogaon Union Parishad unit Information Affairs Secretary Md Mahir Uddin and Ward 6 unit Vice-President Anisur Rahman Anis – in this connection. The development came on Wednesday after the victim, 14, from Gurudashpur upazila in Natore, sued the duo. According to the case, the girl along with her 10-year-old cousin headed towards her brother-in-law’s house in Mannannagar village by bus  on Tuesday afternoon. But they mistakenly got off the bus in Mahishkul area and started roaming around looking for their destination. Noticing the matter, the Juba League leaders, pretending to help them, took the girl and her cousin to Bidyadhar area after dusk, where they  violated her after some time. As she started screaming, people from nearby places came to her rescue and handed her over to police. When contacted, Tarash police station’s OC Manzur Rahman, confirming the arrest, but said they could not find the victim’s cousin from the spot. He also said they could not get trace of her sister and brother-in-law reaching the address she had provided after being rescued.