Rape, viral video, and a few questions

Many Bangladeshis could not sleep properly last night after watching a horrific video. The video is of a raped woman. Her cries have shaken the whole of Bangladesh. It is as if the entire country has been stripped bare. After the video went viral, people across the country came to know that this barbaric incident took place in the Muradnagar upazila of Cumilla. The incident had occurred on Thursday night, 26 June. On Friday afternoon, when the victim filed a case at the police station, the police launched an operation.

According to media reports published on Sunday (June 29), the police have arrested five people in connection with the incident. Among the arrested is the main accused, Fazor Ali, who was arrested at around 5 am today from the Saidabad area in Dhaka. The others were arrested for circulating the video of the woman being tortured. They are Md. Sumon, Ramzan Ali, Md. Arif, and Md. Onik. The arrested individuals are from Muradnagar upazila.

According to the case statement and from speaking with the victim, it is known that the Hindu woman had come to visit her parental home about 15 days earlier from her husband's house. On Thursday night, a religious festival was taking place near her father's house. Family members had gone there; she was alone at home. At around 10 pm, a man named Fazor Ali (38) came to her father's house and asked her to open the door. At this point, she refused to open the door. Eventually, the man broke the door and entered the house and raped her.

This is the information received so far. Now let a few questions be raised: how does a person get the courage to break down a door and enter a woman's house? The political identity of the accused has come to light. Some say that a rapist's identity is only that of a rapist, his political identity does not matter. But it is also true that his political identity is a source of power for him.

The second question is, when local residents heard her screams and rushed to the scene, why did they first assault the victimised woman, why did they not take a moment to verify the truth of the incident? Why did some among them begin recording her naked video at that moment? Isn’t the whole thing a kind of sickness? And with what taste or sense did they then share this video on social media? And after they shared it, why did countless others go on to share it further and make it viral?

Leaving aside the rapist, and those who recorded the video, what exactly did the people who shared the video think they were doing? What message did they intend to convey by doing so? Again, it has been heard that the video that spread is not even of that raped woman. More shocking is that since Sunday afternoon, the woman has been seen giving interviews to various media outlets. She is telling journalists that she now wants to withdraw the case. She is not clearly stating why she wants to withdraw the case. She has said that there is no pressure on her. Journalists have also reported that the accused rapist Fazor Ali had an extramarital relationship with the victim. The woman herself has made this allegation.

With many questions on the table, analysis of the incident reveals that we are still mired in all kinds of confusion. The authorities must conduct a more proper investigation of the incident. Here, the accused rapist, the victim, those who recorded the video, and those who shared it—there remains the question of who among them is more guilty.

Therefore, a safe and proper environment, quality education and healthcare, and a repression-free society must be ensured for women and children. At the same time, everyone, including close relatives, must behave humanely towards women and children, and greater emphasis must be placed on the practice of morality and values.