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Published : 17 Mar 2025, 01:53 PM
The trial of two cases -- one involving the gang-rape of a housewife at Sylhet’s MC College dormitory and the other involving extortion and robbery charges -- will now proceed in the Speedy Trial Tribunal after a long delay.
The legal roadblock that had stalled the proceedings was lifted after the state withdrew its appeal against a High Court verdict on the matter.
On Monday, a three-member Appellate Division bench led by Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam approved the state’s request to withdraw the leave-to-appeal petition.
Lawyer Abdul Qayum Liton, the plaintiff’s counsel, said: “The trial had been halted for nearly three years due to the government’s appeal against a High Court ruling. Now that the government has withdrawn its appeal, there is no longer any obstacle to transferring the case to the Speedy Trial Tribunal.”
The case stems from an incident on Sept 25, 2020, when a newly-married housewife visited the MC College in Sylhet with her husband. A group of Chhatra League activists allegedly abducted her from the campus and gang-raped her inside the dormitory.
The next morning, her husband filed a case at Shah Paran Police Station, naming Chhatra League activist Saifur Rahman as the key suspect. Police also filed a separate case related to extortion and car hijacking linked to the same incident.
On Dec 3, 2020, police pressed formal charges in two separate courts: the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal for the rape case and the Metropolitan Sessions Court for the extortion and robbery case.
In both chargesheets, Saifur was named as the prime suspect.
According to the chargesheet in the rape case, six people were directly involved in the crime. Two others were charged as accessories to the crime.
Those directly involved were Saifur, Shah Mahbubur Rahman Rony, Tarek Uddin, Arjun Laskar, Ainuddin alias Ainul, and Misbaul Islam Rajon Miah. Those charged with aiding and abetting were Rabiul Islam and Mahfuzur Rahman Masum.
