UZ chairman stands accused in rape case

A case has been filed against Sunamganj's Bishwambarpur upazila Chairman Harun Ur Rashid over allegedly raping a woman in his office.

Aged about 32, the woman from the same upazila filed the case with Bishwambarpur Police Station on Wednesday, hours after being “violated”, said Mahbubur Rahman, officer-in-charge of the police station.

The woman, mother of four, was admitted to One Stop Crisis Centre at Sunamganj Sadar Hospital yesterday, said the OC.

However, the accused, a local BNP leader, denied the allegation saying he was framed by his political rivals.

Quoting the case statement, Mahbubur said the chairman called in the woman to his office at the upazila complex around 2:30pm giving an assurance that a sewing machine would be allotted to her. At one stage, he “raped” the woman.

Hearing her scream, some people present at the upazila complex gathered in front of the chairman's office. Harun, however, managed to leave the place, the OC added.

Talking to The Daily Star, the upazila chairman, also a former president of upazila BNP, said the allegation was utterly false.

“I was out of my office on Wednesday afternoon to attend arbitration in a remote village. Some of my political rivals cooked up the story of rape only to create controversy about me ahead of the next national polls,” Harun said.

The OC said police would take necessary actions after receiving the medical report from the One Stop Crisis Centre. The report is expected to be available within a week.