Pregnant woman ‘gang-raped’ in Dhaka’s South Keraniganj

Two people have been arrested over the incident, police say

A 20-year-old pregnant woman has allegedly been gang-raped in Dhaka’s South Keraniganj amid nationwide discussions surrounding a child rape incident in Magura.

Police have arrested two suspects over the incident – Ashraful Islam Siam, 19, and Dipu Sarkar, 20.

The incident occurred around midnight on Saturday in the Pangaon area, said Inspector Mosharraf Hossain Mia, chief of the Zajira Police Outpost.

The woman said she was married some time ago. Her husband left her when she was four months’ pregnant.

Mosharraf said, “When the woman – who was abandoned by her husband – came to the Sadarghat from her house in Chandpur on Saturday, three men took her to an abandoned house in the Rishipara Naya Bari aera of Pangaon with promises of food and shelter and raped her for about two and a half hours.”

After receiving a report from a local resident, police went to the spot, rescued the woman, and arrested two people.

Police say the woman is from a very poor family and she had come to Dhaka hoping to find some work after her husband left. Law enforcers say her attackers took advantage of her helplessness.

A case has been filed and efforts are underway to arrest the third perpetrator, who is absconding, Mosharraf said.