A court in Feni has indicted 16 people over the murder of Madrasa girl Nusrat Jahan Rafi burned to death in April.
On Thursday (Jun 20), the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal has set Jun 27 for hearing witnesses’ depositions, said Public Prosecutor Hafez Ahmed.
On May 29, the Police Bureau of Investigation submitted its chargesheet with the Feni judicial magistrate court against 16 people.
They are madrasa principal SM Siraj-ud-Daula, Nur Uddin, Zobair Hossain, Shakhawat Hossain Jabed, Absar Uddin, Abdur Rahim Sharif, Iftekhar Uddin Rana, Ruhul Amin, Umme Sultana Poppy, Kamrun Nahar Moni, Maksud Alam, Hafez Abdul Kader, Imran Hossain, Mohiuddin Shakil, Mohammad Shamim, and Shahadat Hossain Shamim.
Siraj has been named as the prime accused and charged with ordering the fatal arson attack on Nusrat at the Sonagazi Islamia Fazil (Degree) Madrashah.
On May 30, the case was shifted to Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal for quick disposal.
On Thursday, the tribunal indicted all 16 suspects and scheduled Jun 27 for recording testimonies of witnesses.
Principal Siraj was in jail at the time of the attack in a case for alleged sexual abuse of Nusrat.
Siraj’s followers Shamim, Zobair, Moni, Poppy and Jabed set Nusrat on fire on the roof top of the madrasa when she refused to withdraw the sexual abuse charges against Siraj on Apr 6, police had said earlier citing their confessional statements given to the court. She lost the battle for her life five days after the attack.
Nur Uddin met Siraj in jail on Apr 4 and plotted the arson attack with the others the following day, according to police.
Shamim, a senior student of the madrasa, got involved in the attack because Nusrat had earlier refused his proposal for a relationship, police said.
Local Awami League leaders Ruhul Amin and Maksud Alam helped with money to carry out the attack, according to investigators.
The charges under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act include burning Nusrat to death, taking part in the murder plan, and abating the killing.