Death for dowry: Court sentences man to death for 2016 murder of his wife

His mother and aunt have been acquitted in the case

A Dhaka court has sentenced a man to death for the murder of his wife over a demand for dowry in 2016.

Dhaka Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Judge Munshi Md Moshiar Rahman delivered the verdict in the case on Thursday.

The death row convict, Sohel Rana, is absconding. He has also been fined Tk 100,000 by the court.

However, his mother Shiuli Begum and aunt Majeda Begum have been acquitted as their involvement in the crime could not be proven.

Ershad Alam, a prosecutor at the court, said that the judge also instructed the Dhaka District Magistrate to sell the convict’s movable and immovable assets to pay the fine to the victim’ family.

An arrest warrant has also been issued against Sohel as he is absconding.

The case documents say that Sohel married Mossammat Sonia Akhter in 2013. It alleges that immediately after the marriage, Sohel and his family would “beat” Sonia to demand a dowry.

To preserve the marriage, Sonia’s father Md Chan Mia paid a Tk 90,000 dowry. But her husband’s family continued to “abuse her physically and mentally” for an additional Tk 50,000.

The case alleges, “Between 3am and 8am on Jul 17, 2016, Sohel and his accomplices suffocated Sonia to death with a pillow at the house in Imam Ali Alley near the iron bridge in Kamrangirchar.”

On Jul 18, Sonia’s father Chan Mia filed a case over the incident at Kamrangirchar Police Station. After an investigation, Inspector Shaker Mohammad Jubair of the police station filed a chargesheet against the three suspects on Oct 26 of the same year.

The suspects were indicted on Jul 3, 2018, paving the way for the trial. The judge heard the testimony of 12 witnesses.

After hearing arguments from the prosecution and the defence, the tribunal sentenced Sohel to death on Thursday.