Pallabi murder: Parents of the child demand death penalty for the accused

The parents of the child have testified in the court in the case of the murder of an eight-year-old child after rape in Pallabi in the capital.

They testified at the Children’s Violence Suppression Tribunal in Dhaka on Tuesday. 

At that time, they demanded the death penalty for the accused.

The main accused in the case, Sohel Rana and his wife Swapna Akhter, were brought to the court from the jail under heavy police guard at around 9 am. Later, they were taken to the court docket.

The hearing began at around 10:30 am in the court of Judge Masrur Salekin. Firstly, the child's father testified. He described the incident in detail. 

At one stage, when the state's lawyer showed a picture of the child's severed head, he started crying profusely in the dock. 

Later, the child's mother testified. After the testimony, the defendant's lawyer Musa Kalimullah cross-examined them.

At the beginning of the hearing, state's lawyer Azizur Rahman drew the court's attention and said, "Defendant Sohel Rana is making random statements." 

He appealed to the court not to give the media the opportunity to talk to the accused while they were being brought to the court.

In response to the application, the judge said that no statement of the accused can be broadcast in the media while he is in police custody. At the same time, he directed the concerned to take necessary measures to prevent the accused from making such statements in the future.

The state lawyer said that according to the law, no accused in police custody has the opportunity to make a statement except before a judge.

 The High Court also has clear instructions in this regard.

Later in the day, the court also recorded the testimony of the elder sister of the murdered child through a camera trial.