Zakaria Noman Foyezi, the former publicity secretary of Hifazat’s recently dissolved committee, has been accused in a rape case filed by a woman in Chattogram.
The case was filed on Thursday night with Hathazari Police Station, said Abdullah Al Masum, Chattogram’s assistant superintendent of police (special branch), reports bdnews24.com.
Noman stands accused of having a sexual relationship with the woman since 2019 after luring her with promises of marriage.
“The woman filed the case against him after he did not marry her,” the police offer said.
According to Bangladesh’s Prevention of Violence Against Women and Children Act, rape is defined as a case where a man engages in a sexual relationship with a woman under the age of 16 with or without her consent, or as a case where a man engages in nonconsensual sex with a woman over the age of 16 he is not married to, or obtains her consent through intimidation or deception.
Noman Foyezi was arrested on Thursday and brought to Chattogram in a case over recent violence in Hathazari. The court granted police a five-day remand to question him.
According to the details of the rape case, Noman Foyezi became acquainted with the woman in September 2019 over Facebook. The Hifazat leader then messaged her on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp and ‘lured her with promises of marriage’ to Hathazari.
According to the plaintiff, Noman Foyezi rented a house in Hathazari in November and she stayed with him there.
The plaintiff claimed she had moved to Chattogram nearly a year ago to stay with her aunt, but Noman Foyezi pursued her there and ‘tricked her into engaging in “physical relationship” at various homes and hotels’.
Police had found evidence that Noman Foyezi had engaged in more than one ‘extramarital relationship’, Chattogram Superintendent of Police SM Rashidul Haque had said at a press conference on Thursday.
Police had found several chat messages on the mobile phone, which they would submit to the court, he said.
“He has confessed to having both extramarital relationship and extramarital physical relationship,” Haque said.
“I questioned him personally. I told him that these actions did not go with his dress and his goals and ideals… and he apologised for it.”
The police officer expressed his opinion that such extramarital affairs were ‘criminal offences’ and legal action would be taken accordingly.
He had added that police found evidence of Noman Foyezi’s extramarital relationships with two to three women and that police had learned their identities.
