A group of youths allegedly beat a man to death for protesting against their stalking of his daughter-in-law at Raipura in Narsingdi on Monday.
The deceased was identified as Ratan Bhuiyan, 48, a grocer of village Hasnabad under Raipura upazila.
Police and locals said Ratan’s daughter-in-law Sonia along with her friends Shanta and Mitu was returning home from a private coaching centre at Hasnabad Bazar. When they reached Hasnabad Eastpara, a gang of youths led by Rajib, Sohel, and Jasimuddin began to stalk them. Sonia and her friends cried for help, hearing which Ratan rushed to the spot and told the gang to stop it.
At one stage the stalkers beat the man black and blue with bamboo sticks. Locals rushed to the spot, rescued Ratan, and sent him to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital. As physicians on duty at the Narsingdi hospital referred him to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Ratan was rushed to the DMCH, where he succumbed to his injuries in the late afternoon.
Ratan’s son Rabin filed a case with Raipura police station against six to seven people including the three main stalkers.
Raipura police station officer-in-charge Abdul Baten said Ratan was killed as he protested against stalking of his daughter-in-law.
The killing of Ratan took the number of people killed by stalkers since January 2010 to 22.
Harassment and stalking of girls and women emerged as one of the major human rights concerns in 2010.
Human rights organisation Odhikar, in its yearly Human Rights Report 2010, documented that 129 female victims had been assaulted or injured by stalkers in last year. In addition, 25 women and 127 men were assaulted or injured for protesting against stalking. Besides, 25 women victims and the father of one committed suicide, while 10 women victims had been saved from attempted suicide in the year. Seven women and 14 men had also been killed in stalking-related incidents.
On April 3, 2010, Umme Kulshum Ilora, 14, a student of Class-VIII, committed suicide at Nandipara of Khilgaon in Dhaka after being stalked. A man named Rezaul had reportedly been verbally harassing Ilora continuously and threatened Ilora and her mother a few days before Ilora’s death. She committed suicide following the incident.
On April 5, 2010, a teenager named Pinki was allegedly burnt to death by a youth named Tobarak. The violence was committed after Pinki reportedly refused Tobarak’s proposal to have a love affair. Tobarak entered Pinki’s residence and allegedly set fire to her body after pouring kerosene over her. She succumbed to her burn injuries at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. It was later learnt that Moriam Pinki, 16, resident of village Konabhawal under Tarail upazila of Kishoreganj district had been harassed by Tobarak of the same village for a long time.
Not only are innocent young women being harassed and physically abused by stalkers but those who protest against the crime also fall into the clutches of the perpetrators.
A group of criminals killed Mizanur Rahman Mizan, a chemistry teacher at the Laksmanpur College at Bagatipara upazila in Natore district as he had been protesting against continuous stalking of one of his female students. On October 12, 2010, local goons named Asif and Rajon stopped him while he was riding his motorbike and beat him mercilessly with iron rods. Mizanur Rahman died on October 25, 2010 while undergoing treatment at a hospital. The police later arrested Asif and Rajon in this connection.
On October 26, 2010, Chapa Rani Bhoumik, 48, mother of a female student of Garakhola under Modhukhali upazila in Faridpur district, was killed by a local goon named Debashish Saha Roni and his associates. They ran a motorcycle over her again and again for protesting against the stalking of her two daughters, Hira and Mukta. She was admitted to a local hospital, where she later died. The police arrested Debashish Saha Roni in this connection.
On 17 November, 2010, Abdus Sobhan, 74, a grandfather of a stalking victim, was killed by Mostafa and Ripon, two local young men of village Noleya in Kurigram district. The young men had been harassing his granddaughter, Rujina. They beat Abdus Sobhan and strangled him to death for protesting their stalking of his grandchild.
