Child tied to pillar and tortured in Lakshmipur: 1 arrested

Staff Correspondent:
A PSC candidate, Shaon (10), was tied to a pillar and tortured on the pretext of stealing betel nuts in Char Palwan village of Raipur upazila of Lakshmipur. Police have arrested the perpetrator, Imran Hossain (50).

On Sunday morning, the perpetrator, Imran, was arrested from his home in the village. SI Md. Ershad filed a case under the Children's Act and sent Imran to court.

The victim, Md. Shaon, is the son of the late Munsur Ali of the area and a PSC examinee of Char Palwan Government Primary School. The accused, Imran Hossain, is the son of the late Sanaullah Khan of the same area. On Saturday morning, Imran beat the child, put a betel nut on his shoulder, took a picture of him and posted it on Facebook, calling him a thief.
According to the child's family, local residents and police sources, there has been a dispute with the family of the deceased Munsur Mia of Char Palwan village in Raipur Union regarding the land of Nur Mohammad Mia of the same area. Nur Mohammad is the uncle of the abused child. On Saturday morning, when Shaon went to collect betel nuts from the disputed land, Imran Hossain, an influential businessman and lessee of the betel nut garden, arrested the child Shaon and after beating him, tied him to a cement pillar and took a picture of him with a betel nut on his shoulder. At that time, a picture of the child's torture went viral from a Facebook ID of a local youth named Khan Mahmud. Upon receiving the news, Humayun Kabir Patwari, the headmaster of Char Palwan Government Primary School, went to the spot and rescued Shaon.
In this incident, the child's mother Hosneyara Begum said, "Noor Mohammad Mia's family is forcibly occupying our property because my husband died. They have leased the betel nuts on that land to Imran. The child, Shaon, did not steal the betel nuts, he was tied to a pillar and tortured on fabricated false charges. I want justice from the society."
Accused Imran said, "I have taken a lease on the betel nut orchard from a local, Nur Mohammad. When I came to the orchard in the morning, I saw that Shaon was caught picking betel nuts and was beaten lightly. His picture was posted on Facebook because he stole them."
Raipur Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) AKM Azizur Rahman Mia said that upon learning of the incident, Imran Hossain was arrested on charges of child abuse and sent to court. Further legal action will be taken after receiving a written complaint from the victims.