A Narayanganj court has opened the trial of former Hifazat-e Islam leader Mamunul Haque in a rape case.
District and Sessions Judge Mohammad Anisur Rahman took cognisance of the charges made against Mamunul by Jannat Ara Jharna, a woman he claims was his second wife, reports bdnews24.com.
Inspector Asaduzzaman said the former joint secretary of the Islamist outfit was transferred from Kashimpur High-Security Prison in Gazipur to Narayanganj around 9 am and returned to jail two hours later under tight security.
The woman started the case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act with Narayanganj's Sonargaon Police Station at the end of April.
Due to the absence of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal judge, Public Prosecutor Rakib Uddin filed the indictment in the case.
He said the police submitted a charge sheet after wrapping up the investigation in the case. The court ordered that witness hearings be carried out once the charge sheet is reviewed.
Jharna claimed that she had a “happy family life” with her husband Shahidul Islam and two children. Her life changed for the worse after she met her husband's friend Mamunul in 2005, according to the case details.
The woman alleged that Mamunul started intervening in issues tied to their family and encouraged her to walk out on her husband. Following Mamunul's advice, Jharna ended her marriage with Shahidul in 2018, according to the case.
The Hifazat leader asked her to come to Dhaka, taking advantage of her vulnerable situation after the divorce. In Dhaka, Mamunul made sexual advances on her, she alleged.
Mamunul began a sexual relationship with Jharna with promises of marriage and began to take Jharna along with him during pleasure trips to hotels and resorts in 2018, the case says.
He raped her at the Royal Resort in Narayanganj's Sonargaon on Apr 3, the woman alleged.
The Hifazat leader was caught at the resort with Jharna. He was arrested by the police on Apr 18 in a separate case over violence.
