A police constable has been accused of cutting a finger of an eight-year-old boy in Natore following a dispute between children over playing together. The injured child was initially taken to Natore Sadar Hospital before being transferred to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital for further treatment.
The accused, identified as police constable Shakil, is employed at the Natore Superintendent of Police’s office and lives as a tenant at the child’s family home.
The incident reportedly took place on Thursday morning (24 September) in the West Chairmanpara area of Bara Harishpur in Natore town.
The child’s father, Mohammad Mahmudul Hasan Milon, a senior officer at a local branch of Janata Bank in Dhaka, said the dispute began the previous evening during a picnic organised at their home.
According to Mahmudul, his wife had arranged the gathering with members of the tenant family. During the event, the two children were playing when they became involved in a physical altercation. Their mothers intervened and resolved the matter immediately, he said.
Mahmudul alleged that on Thursday morning, Shakil called his son into his room. Shakil’s wife was also present, according to the father. At one point, he alleged, the child’s finger on his right hand was cut with a knife.
The boy was subsequently taken to Natore Sadar Hospital in a serious condition. After receiving initial treatment there, he was transferred to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital for more advanced medical care.
Mahmudul said he was deeply distressed by what had happened to his young son and called for a proper investigation to establish the facts and determine responsibility.
The family has also made another serious allegation. They claim that after the incident involving the child’s finger, the constable submitted a complaint to the Superintendent of Police alleging that the child had been involved in a rape-related incident. The family has described the allegation as false and said it has caused considerable distress and concern.
The claims made by both sides have not been independently established. The circumstances surrounding the alleged injury and the subsequent complaint are expected to be examined as part of any official inquiry.
Attempts were made several times to contact constable Shakil by telephone for his response to the allegations, but he did not answer. His account of the incident therefore could not be obtained.
Mahbubur Rahman, resident medical officer at Natore Modern Sadar Hospital, said he was not aware of any case involving an eight-year-old child being admitted to the hospital in connection with a rape allegation.
Natore Additional Superintendent of Police Mohammad Iftekhar Alam said the authorities had been informed about the matter. He said the truth of the allegations and the actual circumstances of the incident could only be established through an investigation.
According to the police official, efforts were under way to determine what had actually happened. He added that if a formal complaint was received, necessary legal action would be taken following an investigation.
The allegations have raised concern among the child’s family, who are seeking a clear account of how the injury occurred and appropriate legal measures if wrongdoing is established. The case also involves competing allegations, making an impartial examination of the available evidence essential to establishing the sequence of events.
