Police on Monday morning detained three staffers of a Dhaka-bound launch over the allegation that a teenage girl jumped off the launch to save herself from sexual harassment by a number of the staff members on board.
The incident that took place on Saturday night created a huge buzz among people after news of the incident went viral on social media. As criticism mounted, the detention was made though a case was yet to be filed as of Monday night.
The 16-year-old victim hailed from Teliar Char of Tazumuddin Upazila in Bhola.
While talking to reporters, the girl revealed that she boarded the Dhaka-bound launch MV Karnaphuli 13 - from Tazmuddin Sluice Ghat around 6 pm on Saturday, with the intention of making it to the capital city and living here.
But her plans were dashed as she had to jump mid-river risking her life and swim ashore, to escape the clutches of a number of staffers.
“They made an indecent proposal for spending the night with them in a cabin,” she disclosed in agony.
When it became clear that even if she didn’t accept they would force her, she found it better to jump into the river.
Noticing the incident, other staffers of the launch threw down a buoy to rescue her, but she failed to hold it, after which the launch left her floating in the river.
Finally, some fishermen who were crossing the area rescued the girl after around three hours and took her to a hospital in Tazumuddin.
Md Rubel, the supervisor of the launch, said they tried to rescue the girl but the attempt resulted in failure. Then they left for Dhaka worrying little about the girl's fate.
Meanwhile, the incident went viral on social media that created a huge outcry.
SM Jiaul Haque, officer-in-charge of Tazumuddin Police Station, said they took the victim under their custody on Sunday night.
Later, police arrested three staffers of the launch from Tazumuddin area on Monday morning.
The detainees are Shakil, 18, Gias Uddin, 29, and Shakil, 19.
One of the three detainees claimed the girl was a thief who had recently fled from Dhaka after stealing valuables from her employer’s residence, said the OC.
However, this could not be true since the launch was on its way to Dhaka when the incident occurred, the OC added.
(Source: UNB)
