Nusrat Murder: Charges framed against madrasa principal Siraj

A Feni court yesterday framed charge against Siraj Ud Daula, suspended principal of Sonagazi Islamia Senior Fazil Madrasa, over sexual assault on Nusrat Jahan Rafi.

Mamunur Rashid, judge of Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, framed the charge while hearing a sexual harassment case filed by Rafi’s mother.

The court also fixed date -- October 27 -- to record statements of the witnesses.

On July 3, the Police Bureau of Investigation submitted the charge sheet before Feni’s Senior Judicial Magistrate Md Zakir Hossain against lone accused Siraj Ud Daula in the case.

Nusrat Jahan Rafi’s mother filed the case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act accusing Siraj Ud Daula a few days before the madrasa student was set ablaze by a group of five unidentified persons on April 6.

Siraj had called Nusrat, an Alim candidate, at his office and tried to abuse her sexually on March 27, according to the case statement.

The 18-year-old girl was set afire allegedly for refusing to withdraw the sexual assault case filed by her mother. The teenage girl was tied up and set afire on the roof of the madarsa’s administration building before she could sit for the Alim exam equivalent to HSC.

Nusrat lost her battle for life on April 10, five days after she was set ablaze at the madrasa.

The incident created public outrage across the country.

Police arrested Siraj the same day and put him behind bars following a court order.

In a confessional statement made on April 29, Siraj said that he had ordered his associates from jail to burn Nusrat to death.

Besides, the district’s Senior Judicial Magistrate Sharaf Uddin Ahmed yesterday recorded statements of six accused in a Nusrat Jahan Rafi murder case.

The accused are Sonagazi Islamia Senior Fazil Madrasa teacher Abdul Kader; and students Abdur Rahim Sharif, Umme Sultana Popy, Kamrun Nahar Moni, Sakhawat Hossain Jabed and Saifur Rahman Md Zobayer.