Two sisters were allegedly subjected to an attempted sexual assault after a group of youths stopped their auto-rickshaw on a road in Sunamganj’s Dharmapasha upazila. When the women’s relative intervened, the attackers allegedly beat him with sticks and fists, leaving him injured.
The incident reportedly took place at around 6.30pm on Monday in front of Altafpur village. The younger woman, a 22-year-old college student, later filed a case at Dharmapasha Police Station under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act. Five people were named in the complaint, while seven to eight unidentified individuals were also accused.
Police launched an operation soon after the case was filed and arrested two people in connection with the allegations.
According to the case statement and accounts provided to police by the two women and the injured man, the college student had travelled by auto-rickshaw to the Shahid Ayatullah Bridge area in neighbouring Madhyanagar upazila with her 24-year-old elder sister and her 28-year-old brother-in-law on Monday afternoon.
While they were there, three youths allegedly began harassing the two women. The brother-in-law protested, leading to an argument between the two sides. Police and the complainant said the youths later left the area and allegedly returned with two more young men on motorcycles, taking up a position on the road near Altafpur village in Dharmapasha.
The women and their relative began their journey home at around 6pm. When their auto-rickshaw reached the Altafpur area about half an hour later, the group allegedly stopped the vehicle.
The case statement alleges that members of the group then grabbed the women by their hands and clothing and began pulling them. The brother-in-law intervened in an attempt to protect them. He was allegedly surrounded and assaulted with punches, kicks, slaps and sticks by several people, including the named accused and some of their relatives.
The two women reportedly cried for help. Hearing their screams, people from nearby areas began approaching the scene. The alleged attackers and their relatives then left the area. The injured man subsequently received initial treatment at a local upazila health complex.
Later that night, at around 9.30pm, the college student lodged the case at Dharmapasha Police Station. Police subsequently began searching for those named in the complaint.
At around 3am, officers conducted a raid at the home of a 48-year-old accused, identified as Mahbub, in Altafpur village and arrested him. Another accused, aged 17, was detained from his home in Berikandi village and taken to the police station.
Sub-Inspector Shariful Islam of Dharmapasha Police Station said a case had been filed over the incident. Mahbub was produced before a court on Tuesday morning and sent to jail. The 17-year-old was sent to the Sunamganj Children’s Court on the same day.
The investigation remains under way, with police seeking to establish the circumstances surrounding the alleged harassment, obstruction of the auto-rickshaw and subsequent assault. The allegations against the accused will be determined through the legal process, and those named in the case remain legally presumed innocent unless proven guilty by a court.
