Family members of the 11-year-old domestic help Aduri were threatened with dire consequences if they did not withdraw the case filed against four persons accused of torturing her including her employer, Nadi.
Nadi’s husband’s brother-in-law Chunnu Mira and his brother-in-law Rocky are accused of torturing Aduri. They offered the family Tk1,00,000 in exchange for withdrawing the case, in a phone call to Aduri’s uncle Mohammad Nazrul Chowdhury.
“They threatened us in the early hours of Wednesday, saying: 'Withdraw the case or you will not able to live in your village or in the capital,' a worried Nazrul told the Dhaka Tribune.
“We do not know what to do and my sister is scared. We do not want anything but a safe place where my sister can live with her children,” he said.
Safia Begum, Aduri's mother, said this was the second time they had received such threat.
“Earlier, they only said we could not live in our village home if we filed the case. But this time they said they even would not let us stay in the capital if we didn’t withdraw the case in exchange for Tk1,00,000 as compensation,” she said.
Aduri, who was rescued by an assistant sub-inspector of police from a dustbin of the capital in critical condition, is now undergoing treatment at One-Stop Crisis Centre of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).
A case was filed with Pallabi police station for the torture of Adrui. The key accused in the case gave a confessional statement to the court on Tuesday.
However, three other accused in the case went into hiding soon after the case was filed, including Chunnu Mira and Rocky.
Magistrate Nuru Mia recorded the statement of Aduri under section 164, said Mozammel Haque, inspector of DMCH police outpost.
Meanwhile, Aduri’s condition is improving day by day. Contacted, Dr Bilkis Akter, coordinator of the specialised hospital, said they were treating Aduri as per instructions of the medical board.
About the threats, she said the One-Stop Crisis Centre is a secure place in the hospital where police officials remain on duty around the clock, and special security measures were taken for the family members of Aduri.
Police on Wednesday picked up Nadi’s mother Ishrat Jahan Baby from her Pallabi residence for interrogation.
