Murder of Sohagi Jahan Tonu refers to the gang rape and murder of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

i student, by unknown person(s).

History

Tonu was a 19-year-old student of

Comilla Victoria College Comilla Victoria Government College is a college in Comilla, Bangladesh. It is one of the oldest and renowned colleges in Comilla as well as in Chittagong division. The college is located beside of Ranir Dighi on 32 acres of land including its in ...

. Her father was an employee of Comilla Cantonment board. Her dead body was found on 20 March 2016 in

Comilla Cantonment Cumilla Cantonment ( bn, কুমিল্লা সেনানিবাস) is a cantonment located near Mainamati, Cumilla city in Bangladesh. The personnel of Bangladesh Army with local civilian inhabit here. The 33rd Infantry Division HQ is ...

. She had gone to study at a private tutors when she disappeared.

Investigation

Tonu's father Lalu, also known as Kalu, filed a murder case with Kotwali Model Police Station in Comilla against persons unknown. The police transferred the case to

Detective Branch Detective Branch is a specialized unit of Bangladesh Police. According to Human Rights Watch, there is extensive documentation of human rights violation by Detective Branch and Rapid Action Battalion. According to Human Rights Watch, 70 percent ...

. The case was handed out to the Criminal Investigation Department on 1 April 2016. The first autopsy found no evidence of rape or murder, which was released on 4 April 2016. The report created controversy. Bangladesh High Court ordered a second autopsy. The initial autopsy was conducted in

Chittagong Medical College Chittagong Medical College (CMC) is situated in the port city of Chattogram, Bangladesh and is the oldest medical college in the south-eastern part of the country. It is affiliated with a tertiary level hospital where clinical students are tra ...

. She was buried in Mirzapur, in

Muradnagar Upazila Muradnagar ( bn, মুরাদনগর, Muradnogor) is an upazila of the Comilla District in Chittagong Division, Bangladesh. History In ancient times, the area was a part of the geopolitical region of Samatata ruled by the Rata dynasty. In t ...

Comilla District Comilla District, officially known as Cumilla District, is a district of Bangladesh located about 100 kilometres south east of Dhaka. Comilla is bordered by Brahmanbaria and Narayanganj districts to the north, Noakhali and Feni districts to t ...

. The second autopsy conducted in Comilla Medical College Hospital had found evidence of rape. A DNA test conducted under the

Criminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is distinct from its Special Branch (though officers of b ...

found evidence of rape through DNA testing in May 2016. Semen from three men was found in Tonu's underwear by the crime lab of CID. CID quizzed an army officer's son, Piyal, who allegedly had harassed her several times. CID also interrogated two army personnel. Tonu's parents claimed that an army sergeant named Zahid and his wife were involved in the incident. However, no such persons were interrogated by the authorities. Even after 4 years of investigation, authorities were unable to make any headway. On October 21, 2020, the Criminal Investigation Department handed the case over to PBI.

Protests

The murder created nationwide protests in

and stated a social media movement. Protests took places in campuses all over Bangladesh and

Bangladesh Students Union Bangladesh Students' Union (BSU) was instituted in 1952. This organization is one of the leading student organizations in Bangladesh. It claims to be working for students and youth right as a secular and progressive students' organization i ...

led protest to the Prime Ministers office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tonu, Sohagi Jahan Deaths by person in Bangladesh Murder in Bangladesh Rape in Bangladesh 2016 murders in Bangladesh

History

Investigation

Protests

See also

References