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Published : 16 Jun 2026, 10:49 AM
A Chattogram court has begun hearing the arguments in a case filed over the rape of a 3.5-year-old child near Chairman Ghata of Bakalia Thana.
Arguments in the case began around 9:30am on Tuesday at the Chattogram Metropolitan Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal.
According to the tribunal’s public prosecutor (PP), Mahmud-ul Alam Chowdhury Maruf, both the prosecution and the defence were scheduled to present their final arguments before the court of Judge Syeda Hafsa Jhuma on Tuesday.
He told bdnews24.com, “Today, both we and the defence will present our arguments. If both sides complete their submissions today, the case will reach the verdict stage.”
Maruf said he expects the court to announce a date for delivering the verdict after Tuesday’s hearing.
Witness testimony in the case began last Wednesday and concluded on Sunday after 18 witnesses testified over three working days. On Monday, during his defence statement, the accused, Monir Hossain, claimed that he was innocent. However, no defence witnesses were presented on his behalf.
The accused, 32-year-old Monir Hossain, is from the Gharghata area of Muradnagar Upazila in Cumilla District. In Chattogram, he lived in Miah Khan Nagar in the city’s Bakalia area. He worked at a decorator’s shop in the Chairman Ghat area.
On the afternoon of May 21, allegations emerged that Monir had raped a 3.5-year-old child there. Police arrived at the scene and detained him.
When police attempted to take Monir to the police station, local residents obstructed them, saying they wanted to ensure punishment for the accused themselves.
After two hours of unsuccessful efforts to move Monir to the police station, police fired tear gas in the evening. At one point, local residents surrounded a police vehicle. Repeated clashes turned the Bakalia area into a battleground. A large police truck was also set on fire. At least 40 people, including journalists, were injured during the violence.
The child was rescued that day and taken to the One-Stop Crisis Center at Chattogram Medical College Hospital. The child’s father later filed a case with Bakalia Police Station.
In that case, Monir was produced before the court of Metropolitan Magistrate Abu Bakkar Siddique on the afternoon of May 22. Police said at the time that he gave a confessional statement.
Chattogram Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner (South) Hosain Md. Kabir Bhuiyan said, “On the day of the incident, the child’s father was in Dhaka and her mother was at a garment factory. The child was with her grandmother. Taking advantage of the situation, Monir either attempted to rape or raped the child. This will be confirmed after receiving the medical report.”
After two weeks of investigation, the investigating officer, Inspector (Investigation) Tanvir Ahmed of Bakalia Police Station, submitted the charge sheet to the court on Jun 4. The charge sheet accused Monir of rape under Section 9(1) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000 (amended in 2003). A total of 22 people were listed as witnesses in the case.
On Jun 9, Judge Syeda Hafsa formally charged Monir and ordered the trial to begin. Witness testimony started the following day.
