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Published : 02 Jul 2025, 02:37 PM
Police have filed a case over the death of 6-year-old Ria Gope, who was shot dead while playing on the rooftop of her home in Narayanganj during the Anti-discrimination Student Movement.
More than 11 months after the incident, Sub-Inspector Abu Raihan of Narayanganj Sadar Model Police Station initiated the case against up to 200 unidentified individuals on Tuesday night, confirmed the station’s chief Nasir Ahmad.
Ria was the only child of Deepak Kumar Gope, a resident of Nayamati near Bangabandhu Road in Narayanganj. He works as a manager at a local construction materials store.
According to the case statement, students brought out a procession from Mondol Para to the Gate No. 2 area under the Narayanganj Sadar Model Police Station in support of the quota reform movement on Jul 19 last year.
Around 4pm, nearly 200 unidentified perpetrators, allegedly affiliated with the Awami League and its associate groups and armed with lethal weapons, attacked the demonstrators with gunfire and explosive devices.
As clashes broke out between the two sides, the attackers began firing indiscriminately. During this time, Ria, who was playing on the rooftop of the four-storey building, was shot in the head.
Seriously injured, she was first taken to Victoria General Hospital. Doctors there referred her to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) for advanced treatment, where she died on the morning of Jul 24 while receiving treatment.
At the time, her father told reporters that Ria went to the rooftop in the afternoon. As gunfire erupted in the area, he rushed to bring her down. Just as he picked her up, a bullet struck her in the head. Even after taking her to DMCH, he could not save her.
OC Nasir Ahmad said the case was supposed to be filed by the victim’s family, but since they had not done so after an extended period, police took the initiative.
