Accused Swapna falls ill ahead of closing arguments

Swapna Akter, a primary accused in the brutal rape and decapitation murder of eight-year-old child Ramisa in Mirpur's Pallabi, fell ill just before the closing arguments were scheduled to begin on Thursday morning. The incident occurred shortly before she was due to be produced before Judge Masrur Salekin of the Dhaka Metropolitan Child Violence Suppression Tribunal.

According to Tribunal Bench Assistant Pankaj Peter Gomez, Swapna was provided emergency medical treatment inside the court lockup. While the closing arguments were originally slated for 11:30am, the proceedings faced delays due to her sudden illness.

The two accused in the case, Sohel Rana and his wife Swapna Khatun, were brought to the court premises around 8am and kept in the Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court lockup. Sohel Rana was escorted to the courtroom at 11:24am, while Swapna was brought in at 11:38am after receiving first aid.

The trial has moved at an unprecedented pace over the last two weeks. The tribunal initially accepted the chargesheet on May 24, which was filed by the investigation officer, Pallabi Police Sub-Inspector Ohiduzzaman, and forwarded by Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ashraful Haque.

Events escalated rapidly this week when the court formally framed charges against the couple on Monday, June 1. By the very next day, Tuesday, the court concluded the deposition phase after recording testimonies from 16 witnesses. During their self-defense statements, both accused maintained their innocence and pleaded not guilty on Wednesday.

According to case details, eight-year-old Ramisa was a second-class student at Popular Model High School. On May 19, Ramisa left her apartment around 9:30am, at which point Swapna reportedly lured her into their residence. An hour later, Ramisa’s mother began searching for her daughter to get her ready for school. During the search, she noticed the child's shoes left outside the accused couple's room.

Receiving no response after repeatedly knocking, Ramisa’s parents and neighbors broke down the door. Inside, they discovered Ramisa’s headless body on the bedroom floor, while her severed head was found hidden inside a large bucket.

Following an urgent call to the national emergency helpline 999, police rushed to the scene and immediately took Swapna into custody. Her husband, Sohel Rana, fled the area but was tracked down and arrested by police using information technology in front of the Fatullah Police Station in Narayanganj.

A formal murder case was filed at the Pallabi Police Station on May 20 by the victim's father, Abdul Hannan Mollah, with the prosecution listing a total of 17 witnesses for the trial.