The verdict in the rape and murder case of Magura girl Asia will be announced on Tuesday. A special High Court bench of Justice Bhishmadev Chakraborty and Justice KM Rasheduzzaman fixed the date on Monday after hearing the death reference and appeal of Hitu Sheikh, who was sentenced to death in the case.
A child, Acia, was raped on March 5 last year while visiting her sister’s house in the city’s Nijnanduali area during the Ramadan holidays. Her sister’s father-in-law, Hitu Sheikh, tried to kill her after raping her. The eight-year-old child later died at the Combined Military Hospital in Dhaka while undergoing treatment. The victim’s mother filed a case against Hitu Sheikh and four others in the incident. Later, the police arrested all of them.
The police filed a chargesheet in the case on April 13, 2025. The trial began on April 23 with the framing of charges. The taking of testimony began on April 27. 29 people testified for the state in the case. The taking of testimony in the case ended on May 7 last year. The judicial proceedings in the case under discussion ended in 13 working days. A year ago, on May 13, the last day of arguments in the case were presented in the court of Judge M Zahid Hasan of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal in Magura. After the presentation of arguments, the verdict was announced on May 17 of the same year.
The Magura Women and Child Abuse Prevention Tribunal sentenced the main accused in the child rape and murder case, Hitu Sheikh (47), to death. He was also fined Tk 100,000.
The remaining three accused were acquitted in the verdict. The acquitted accused are Sajeeb Sheikh (19), the husband of the murdered child’s sister, Sajeeb Sheikh’s younger brother (17), and Sajeeb’s mother Zaheda Begum (40).
The case documents were sent to the High Court on May 21 last year. It was then listed for hearing by a specialized bench.
