Girl abused in classroom

Two Chhatra League men forced all the students out of a classroom except for one girl, shut the door and allegedly abused her verbally and physically.

When the incident happened on May 2 in broad daylight at Dinajpur Textile Institute, teachers and students were around. But when the duo came out of the room a few minutes later, the teachers simply warned them and let them go after they “apologised” for the incident by holding the legs of the teachers.  

About a week on, no action has been taken against the two -- Sultan Mahmud Shihab of Gaibandha and Imran Hossain of Jamalpur. Both are students at the Institute.   

Principal Abdul Mojid said the two were members of the campus unit BCL. 

Asked why no action was taken against them, he said it was a minor incident and that the accused would be punished if the authorities received any complaints against them in future.

The whole incident left the girl, 16, traumatised and she has stopped talking, family members say.

“We took her home on May 6 from Dinajpur Medical College Hospital and doctors asked us not to put mental pressure on her,” said the girl's father by phone.

He added his daughter did not make a “single sound” since the incident.

Witnesses said around 10:00am on the day, Shihab and Imran, both final-year students at the Institute, went to the girl's classroom and forced all the students (except for the victim) out.

There were 22 students in the class at the time.

After vacating the classroom, Shihab went inside the room and hurled abuse at the girl.

Soon after the incident, the girl filed a written complaint with the principal, saying that Shihab abused her verbally and physically. She added Shihab stalked her over the phone and on the way to and from the Institute.

Mysteriously, the girl wrote to the principal the very next day again, cancelling her complaint.

The Daily Star obtained copies of both the applications and found the handwriting to be different.

“This means someone else has written it [the second application] or the girl was forced to do so,” said an official at the Institute, asking not to be named.

The girl fell sick on May 3 and was taken to Dinajpur Medical College Hospital.

On May 4, the Institute authorities sat with the accused, their parents, the victim and her father. At the time, the two again apologised and gave undertakings.

“I have to know from my daughter what has happened. But I guess something is wrong,” said the father of the girl, demanding action against the accused. 

The Daily Star tried to reach Shihab and Imran by phone yesterday, but their phones were found switched off. They were not found in their mess either.

Campus sources they are skipping classes since the incident.