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" Hail the girl "

Raped overnight, she pulls herself together to sit JSC exam; culprit still in hiding
Our Correspondent, Rangpur

She was raped only the previous night. She was dealt a crushing blow even before she could know what life really was. Her father attempted suicide several times over the night. And in the morning, she had to go through a medical test, a process often considered a further embarrassment for the victim.

But neither the trauma of the horrific incident nor the fear of social stigma could deter the 14-year-old girl from moving on with her life.

The brave and bold Junior School Certificate examinee went straight to the exam centre from the hospital and took the test on Friday.

The incident took place in Jadavpur village of Rangpur's Pirganj upazila.

With the JSC examination just a night away, she was studying at her room on Thursday evening. She was alone at home as her father had gone to a local marketplace and her mother was at her parents' place in a nearby village.

Around 8:00pm, Ekramul Haque, 22, son of local rice trader Delwar Rahman, entered her room, gagged her with the scarf she was wearing and raped her.

At one stage, she managed to get rid of the gag and started screaming for help. Neighbours rushed in and rescued the girl but the culprit had fled by th

When her rickshaw-puller father returned home and heard this, he shut himself inside a room and tried to hang himself. Neighbours broke into the room and rescued him. He tried the same a few more times over the night, but was prevented every time.

With the help of local Chotra union parishad chairman Mizanur Rahman Raju, the girl was taken to Pirganj Upazila Health Complex.

Raju was also the headmaster of Kanchanbazaar High School where the girl studied.

Once the medical test was over, the girl, to the astonishment of many, told Raju that she wanted to take her exam and asked him to take her to the exam centre -- Chotra High School.

He then took the girl to the centre, and ensured special arrangements so that she could sit the exam without hassles.

She went through the worst horror of a girl's life, dealt with what could be a crushing experience for others, took the examination and went home like a victor who had just conquered the life itself, said a teacher of the school.

The victim's father lodged a case against Ekramul Haque, who was on the run, with Pirganj Police Station.

Md Israil Hossain, officer-in-charge, said drives were on to catch the culprit.

They went to Ekramul's house and found all his family members had fled, he added.

Published: 12:00 am Sunday, November 09, 2014

Last modified: 7:55 pm Sunday, November 09, 2014