Passengers have rescued a sixth-grader, who was allegedly raped inside a train in Dhaka’s Kamalapur Railway Station, late on Wednesday.
The victim, who was found inside a Jamuna Express train was taken to the police around 12:30 am on Thursday, but was kept waiting for 12 hours without any treatment.
Meanwhile, passengers also handed over a man, who was with the girl on the train, to the police.
Police claim that the delay in filing the case was due to them not being able to track down the girl’s family.
Witness Ratul Sikder, who was at the police station, however, alleged that the victim was kept waiting for so long due to negligence on the police’s part.
“The police could’ve sent her to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment but they didn’t. Not only that, they kept her waiting till afternoon the next day,” he said.
Quoting the sixth-grader, the police said that her grandmother was undergoing treatment at the hospital Mugda General Hospital in Dhaka.
The man, handed over to police by passengers, convinced her to get on a rickshaw to Kamalapur with him when she got down from the hospital and raped her inside a train after threatening her, they said.
The police added that the passengers, finding something off about the child, asked her who she was with and nabbed the man.
She was taken to Kurmitola General Hospital but was turned away as they don’t provide treatment to rape victims.
“I came to Kurmitola Hospital after receiving the news on Wednesday (Jun 10),” said Ratul Sarker.
“The doctors there said that they don’t provide treatment for the rape victims, gave her an injection and advised her to be taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital,” he said.
He added that she was then taken to Kamalapur Railway police and her mother was brought from Maniknagar at 1:30 am.
Meanwhile, the mother said that she left her at the hospital in the evening after which she went missing.
“I came to Dhaka at 1:30am when police called,” she added.
Sub-Inspector Rusho Banik of the railway police at Kamalapur said, “The child has been identified and she will be send to Dhaka Medical College Hospital today [Thursday].”