Two schoolgirls and a housewife have been raped in separate incidents in Pabna on Thursday, police said.

In the early hours of Thursday, a schoolgirl, 15, of Sujanagar municipality area of the district, was gang-raped after she had been allegedly taken to the house of a local municipality councillor Md Shaheb Ali, along with a boy who she was with at the time. 

Police arrested five suspects, including one of the key accused, over the incident after a case was filed with Sujanagar Police Station against 10 to 12 people on Friday.

Five of the accused were named, including the councillor's associate Anwar Hossain Anai and brother Md Nayeb Ali, said Md Sariful Islam, officer-in-charge of the police station.

Recounting the incident, the girl's mother said that her daughter, a class seven student of Sujanagar Shahid Dulal Pilot School, was gang-raped after she was taken to the house of the ward-2 councillor on the pretext of getting her married off to the boy.

“My daughter and a ninth grader of the school loved each other and they were going to get married on Wednesday. They were intercepted by a few local youths, who took them to the house of ward councillor Shaheb Ali on Wednesday night,” she said.

She claimed that afterwards, the councillor's brother, Nayeb Ali, called her and demanded Tk 50,000 for returning her daughter but they could only give Tk 20,000.

While her mother was arranging the money, the girl was taken to another place near the councillor's house, where she was “gang-raped and beaten throughout the night”.

The next morning, the girl's mother came with the money and found her daughter in critical condition. The girl was admitted to Sujanagar Upazila Health Complex before being transferred to Pabna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) on Friday.

When reached, Shaheb Ali denied the allegation and claimed that though the girl was brought to him, he had asked for her to be sent to her parents, adding he had no idea how she was raped.

Following the filing of the case, police arrested Anwar Hossain Anai, among five others, but Nayeb Ali went into hiding after the incident.

The arrestees were sent to jail on yesterday.

“Police are trying to nab Nayeb and others,” the OC said.

Talking to this correspondent, Shamima Khatun Poly of PMCH, confirmed the rape.

“She was raped and physically tortured,” she said. 

Elsewhere, in another incident, an 11-year girl was allegedly raped by a neighbour at Boroichora village in Pabna's Ishwardi upazila on Thursday afternoon when she was returning home from school. The victim, 11, a class-three student of Boroichora Government Primary School is currently undergoing treatment at PMCH.

HOUSEWIFE RAPED, ONE ARRESTED

Meanwhile, a group of criminals raped a housewife, aged 35, of Sholakia village in the upazila on Thursday night.

A case was filed accusing seven locals.

OC Alam confirmed the incident and said the seven gang-raped the woman while she was alone at home.

Police have so far arrested one of the suspects and are conducting drives to nab the others, he added.