Children’s violence tribunal delivers six convictions, including two death sentences in nine months
The judicial process for preventing violence against children has been expedited under existing laws as children's violence suppression tribunals have been established across the country.
In cases involving violence against children, these tribunals are imposing both custodial sentences and fines.
Over the past nine months, Dhaka Metropolitan Children's Violence Suppression Tribunal has delivered verdicts in several cases, handing down two death sentences and four life-term imprisonments.
On June 7, the tribunal sentenced Sohel Rana and his wife, Swapna Akter, to death for killing 8-year-old Ramisa Akter in Pallabi.
The verdict in the case was delivered in just five working days, only 19 days after the incident.
To combat violence against women and children, the government enacted the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000. The law mandates the establishment of a tribunal in every district headquarters, with provisions for the government to set up additional tribunals within a district if necessary. These tribunals were established to ensure expeditious trials.
Following this, the government took steps to establish separate tribunals specifically for the swift adjudication of child rape cases. The objectives include concluding trials within 180 working days, ensuring the protection of victims, and guaranteeing stringent punishment for perpetrators.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Children's Violence Suppression Tribunal is part of this specialised judicial framework. This newly formed tribunal commenced formal judicial proceedings in June of last year.
The tribunal handles cases involving rape followed by murder, prosecuted under Section 9(1) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000. Under this legal provision, for a case to be tried, the victim must be at least 16 years old, and the accused must be at least 18 years old.
Between January and September this year, 49 cases were disposed of by the tribunal. In 6 of these cases, the accused were convicted. The verdicts included 2 death sentences and 4 life-term imprisonments.
Pankaj Peter Gomes, a bench assistant at the tribunal, told BSS that 49 cases were disposed of by Dhaka Metropolitan Children Violence Suppression Tribunal during the nine-month period from January to September this year.
Among those, 6 cases resulted in convictions, with 2 defendants receiving the death penalty and 4 receiving life imprisonment. Currently, 1,921 cases are pending before this tribunal.
Dhaka Metropolitan Public Prosecutor (PP) Omar Faruk Faruqi said the government maintains a strict stance on cases involving violence against children.
"The government established the tribunal to ensure the swift settlement of such cases. The tribunal is handing down not only jail sentences but also death penalties and substantial monetary fines," he said.
Furthermore, Faruqi said, the verdicts mandate that the compensation awarded be paid to the victim's family.
In cases where murder following rape is proven, the law provides for the maximum penalty, and the tribunal is enforcing this provision rigorously, he added.
