Girl ‘raped’ in Magura transferred to CMH in critical condition

A child from Magura, who was allegedly raped while visiting her sister’s house, has been transferred to the Combined Military Hospital, or CMH, in Dhaka in a critical condition.

She was moved from Dhaka Medical College Hospital, or DMCH, on Saturday.

Md Asaduzzaman, director at the DMCH, told bdnews24.com: "The child has been taken to the Combined Military Hospital for advanced treatment. They have just arrived there."

Doctors at the DMCH declared her condition “critical” and formed a medical board to oversee her treatment before the transfer.

On Friday night, she was placed on life support and kept under ventilation, said Asaduzzaman.

"The child's condition is critical. She has been on ventilation since last night, and there has been no improvement in her health," he told bdnews24.com at 12:45pm on Saturday.

Doctors have observed a mark on her neck, suggesting she may have been strangled, which has caused breathing difficulties and further complications.

"This is why doctors believe strangulation has significantly worsened her condition," the DMCH director said.

A medical board was formed on Saturday for the child’s treatment, comprising doctors from four departments, he added.

Asaduzzaman continued, "The head of our paediatrics department has been appointed as the coordinator and experts from paediatric surgery, gynaecology, and anaesthesia are also on the board.

“They have already held a meeting [Saturday]."

Md Samidur Rahman, head of DMCH’s paediatric surgery department and a member of the medical board, said the child was transferred to the intensive care unit, or ICU, due to complications from strangulation.

"The main concern is the impact of strangulation, which has worsened her condition. However, the surgical site is not severely damaged, and her perineum [a part of the genital area] is also not in a critical state," he added.

The 8-year-old girl was allegedly assaulted when she went to visit her sister’s house in Nijnanduali village in the Magura suburbs on Thursday afternoon.

Her family said that she was initially admitted to Magura Sadar Hospital for treatment but when her condition deteriorated, she was sent to Faridpur Medical College Hospital.

From there, she was sent to Dhaka for advanced treatment.

The child's mother noted the difficulties in immediately identifying the culprits as the girl had been alone at the house at the time of the incident and had yet to regain consciousness.

“They found my daughter alone in the house, raped her, and left her. We found her unconscious on the floor and rushed her to the hospital.”

In the wake of the incident, local residents gathered outside the Magura Police Station on Friday, demanding justice for the victim.

Several hundred people participated in the protest after Juma prayers and attempted to enter the police station.

Later, police and military personnel arrived to disperse the crowd and remove them from the area.

Three days after the incident, a case has been filed against four suspects.

The child’s mother started the case at Magura Sadar Police Station on Saturday, accusing the suspects of rape and attempted murder, according to the district's Additional Superintendent of Police Mirajul Islam.

The accused include the child's brother-in-law Sojib Hossain, 18, his father Hitu Mia, 42, Sojib's brother Ratul Sheikh, 17, and their mother Jabeda Begum, 40.

All four have been arrested, said Mirajul.