Child rape attempt accused attacked again at Sylhet court premises

Jakir Hossain, the main accused in the case of attempting to rape and murder four-year-old Fahima Akhter, has been attacked again at the Sylhet court premises. After he was brought to court from jail for a hearing, a group of people attacked him, prompting police to baton-charge to control the situation.

The incident took place around 10am on Thursday (July 23) at the Sylhet Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal premises. Earlier on the same day, Jakir was also attacked outside the court.

According to police and eyewitnesses, Jakir was brought to court from Sylhet Central Jail in a prison van. Relatives and locals of the victim, Fahima, had gathered at the court premises. As Jakir was being taken from the van to the court building, they attacked him. Police later used baton charges to control the situation and took him inside the court.

However, a paternal uncle of Fahima, on condition of anonymity, denied involvement in the attack. He said they were frustrated with the role of the prosecution's lawyer, who they claimed was acting in favour of the accused, raising concerns about justice.

Sylhet Metropolitan Police Additional Deputy Commissioner (Media) Md Monjurul Alam said Jakir had been brought to court under adequate police security. He said an investigation is being conducted into how the attack happened.

It may be noted that Fahima Akhter (4), daughter of day labourer Roisul Haque from Sonatala village in Kandigaon Union of Sylhet Sadar upazila, went missing on May 6. Her body was recovered from beside a pond in the village two days later. Jakir Hossain, a resident of the same village and the child's paternal uncle, was arrested on May 11 on charges of attempted rape and murder. The charge sheet accuses Jakir of attempted rape and murder, while his two brothers, Joynal Ahmad and Abul Kalam, have been accused of helping to conceal the body.

After his arrest, Jakir gave a confessional statement to police and later under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code. However, he recently claimed that the statement was obtained under coercion.