'You're not alone'

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday assured the gang-rape victim of Noakhali's Subarnachar upazila that his party and Jatiya Oikyafront would stand by her.

Standing next to her at Noakhali General Hospital, where she is undergoing treatment, an emotion-choked BNP secretary general said, “Sister, you've got nothing to worry about… we're with you.”

A teary-eyed Fakhrul placed his hand over her forehead and said, “You're not alone.” Trial must be held for such brutality and justice has to be ensured, he added.

The woman's husband, BNP and Oikyafront leaders were also present there. It was a heartbreaking scene at the hospital as everyone tried but could not hold back their tears, reports UNB.

Fakhrul on behalf of BNP and Oikyafront handed over financial aid to the victim's family members for her treatment and other purposes.

After Fakhrul, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD-Rob) President ASM Abdur Rob and Krishak Sramik Janata League President Kader Siddique visited the victim and consoled her.

They spoke to the family members and doctors, inquired about her health condition and provided her with financial assistance, reports our Noakhali correspondent.

Later, talking to journalists, Fakhrul said Awami League has deceived people by depriving them of their voting right. “They [AL] have turned into public enemy through snatching away people's voting right and taking a stance against them.”

He alleged that many were injured in violence unleashed by the ruling party men before, during and after the election. Even a mother of four was not spared, he said, adding, “We strongly condemn it and seek justice from people.”

Fakhrul said along with people, they will put up a resistance against Awami League's move to “establish one-party rule in the country by annihilating democracy”.

Earlier in the day, Fakhrul, senior BNP and Oikyafront leaders started their journey for Noakhali from BNP chairperson's Gulshan office around 7am, six days after the incident. They reached the hospital by 12:30pm.

On Monday, the mother of four was gang-raped allegedly by 10 to 12 Awami League activists. The 35-year-old woman claimed that she was raped for voting for “sheaf of paddy”, the electoral symbol of BNP, during Sunday's national polls.