Rumi Akter Polly of DOT
Bangladesh Cyber Tribunal yesterday sentenced former officer-in-charge (OC) of Sonagazi Police Station Moazzem Hossain to eight-year of rigorous imprisonment in a case filed under Digital Security Act for filming madrasa student Nusrat Jahan Rafi’s statement and circulating the video clip on social media without her consent, reports BSS.
Judge Mohammad Ash-Shams Joglul Hossain of the Cyber Tribunal of Dhaka handed down the judgement at around 2.40pm in presence of the accused Moazzem.
He was also fined Tk 15 lakh, in default of which he has to serve six more months in jail.
The fine money will be handed over to Nusrat’s family, the court observed.
Police brought Moazzem fro Kashimpur Central Jail to the court at 9.00am and kept him in the court lockup.
Later, he was taken to the courtroom after 2.00pm.
On November 20, the tribunal fixed yesterday for delivering the verdict as both the prosecution and the defence concluded their arguments in the case on that day.
A total of 12 prosecution witnesses incuding investigation officer (IO) Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) senior ASP Rima Sultana testified in the case.
On April 15, Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Syed Sayedul Haque Sumon filed the case under section 26, 29 and 31 of Digital Security Act against Moazzem Hossain for illegally recording Nusrat’s statement on video and spreading it online.
On July 17, the tribunal framed charges in the case as Moazzem pleaded not guilty before the court.
On June 17, the tribunal sent Moazzem Hossain to jail after scrapping his plea for bail in the case.
On June 16, Moazzem was arrested from the capital’s Shahbagh area.
The tribunal on May 27 issued arrest warrant against the disgraced cop a day after Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) submitted its probe report over the incident.
According to the allegations, the former Sonagazi OC summoned Nusrat as she filed a case against Feni’s Sonagazi Islamia Senior Fazil Madrasa principal Siraj Uddoula for sexual harassment.
The police official in his room started quizzing her about the incident and was recording the whole incident in absence of any lawyer or female cop. He was seen scolding her and asking Nusrat indecent questions. Moazzem later posted the video on different social media sites.
Nusrat, a student of Feni’s Sonagazi Islamia Senior Fazil Madrasa, was set ablaze on April 6 by Siraj Uddoula’s stooges and she succumbed to her injuries at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on April 10.
Nusrat had accused Sirajuddoula of harassing her sexually on March 27 while she was exposed to his extreme vengeance on April 6 as she went to the madrasa to appear in Alim examination.
A group of masked youths, later found to be the cronies of the disgraced principal, took Nusrat to the rooftop of the madrasa and set her on fire after tying her with her scarf.