Asia Case Verdict: Death for Main Accused, Others Walk Free

Crime

Asia Case Verdict: Death for Main Accused, Others Walk Free

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The verdict in the much-discussed rape and murder case of Magura's child Asia has been announced. Magura Women and Child Abuse Prevention Tribunal Judge M Zahid Hasan announced the verdict on Saturday (May 17) morning. The main accused in the case, Hitu Sheikh, has been sentenced to death, while the remaining three accused - Hitu Sheikh's wife Zaheda Begum and two sons Sajib Sheikh and Ratul Sheikh - have been acquitted.

The four accused were brought from jail to the Magura trial court at around 8:30 am before the verdict was announced.

Earlier, after the presentation of arguments in the case on May 13, the court set May 17 as the date for the verdict. The arguments began at 10 am on May 12 and ended at 12 noon. However, as it did not end on the first day, arguments were presented again the next day.

State lawyer Advocate Monirul Islam Makul said that a total of 29 witnesses testified in the case in court. There were 16 witnesses in the seven seizure lists, 12 of whom testified in court to verify their seizure lists. In addition, three medical certificates were presented in the case, signed by five doctors. All of them testified in court, identified their signatures and supported the information in the certificates.

The state claimed that based on the evidence, the crime under Section 9(2) of the Prevention of Atrocities on Women and Children Act, 2000 (Amended 2003) against Hitu Sheikh has been proven beyond reasonable doubt.

On March 6, eight-year-old Acia was raped while visiting her sister's in-laws' house in Nijnanduali village of Magura town. She was admitted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka in a critical condition, where she died on March 13.

Acia's death sparked widespread anger among the general public and students across the country. Students took to the streets to protest and local lawyers announced that they would not provide any legal assistance to the accused.

The main accused in the case, Hitu Sheikh, gave a confessional statement in court on March 15. He admitted that he was the only one involved in the rape and attempted murder. However, on April 13, the investigating officer of the case and the inspector (investigation) of Magura Sadar Police Station filed charges against all four and submitted an investigation report to the court.