Madrassa teacher held for violating minor girl
Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury
April 25, 2011
On Wednesday, March 16, 2011, a 10-year old minor girl was forcefully raped by Moulana Tofael Ahmed Osmani, teacher of Noapara Najjatul Ummah Women Madrassa. According to eyes witnesses, Moulana Tofael established the madrassa and orphanage eight months back by renting a floor of a building owned by a local house owner named Abdul Munim. This madrassa teacher allured locals in sending their girls, especially orphans to his madrassa and orphanage, where he also made residential arrangements to house at least 35 girls.
During the late hours of Wednesday, Moulana Tofael Ahmed Osmani entered the room, where the minor girl was sleeping with other students of the madrassa. He silently lifted her on his arms and took her to his room. When the girl woke up, the Moulana whispered saying, he was going to give her some fruits as gift for her brilliance in learning Koran.
After taking the minor girl in the room, Moulana Tofael offered her a banana and locked the door. While the girl was easting the fruit, Moulana started touching private parts of the minor child and at one stage suddenly took off her clothe and started raping. Being totally terrified at such unexpected incident, the girl started calling her inmates for help. Hearing her voice, locals approached the building and entered the room by smashing the door. The minor girl was bleeding and she was immediately rushed to the nearby hospital for treatment.
Angry villagers started assaulting the rapist madrassa teacher and later they handed him over to police.
Endorsing the incident, officer-in-charge of Sylhet Kotwali Police Station, Khandaker Nowroz Ahmed told reporters that due legal actions are being taken against the rapist madrassa teacher. A case has already been lodged by the police in this regard.
It may be mentioned here that for past few years, mushroom growth of madrassas [both Koranic and kindergarten] is witnessed in Bangladesh. Most of these madrassas are funded by dubious Afro-Arab sources.
Free education, lodging and food are offered to male and female orphans particularly at kindergarten and cadet madrassas. It was already reported in local and international media that, most of the students of such kindergarten and cadet madrassas are given Jihadist indoctrination, while a large number of madrassa students are sent abroad with hidden mission of Jihad. Similarly, thousands of Madrassa students travel abroad in disguise, who also are believed to be considering non-Muslims as ´enemies of Islam´.
It may be mentioned here that, hundreds and thousands of locals go abroad with employment or tourist visas. It is speculated that, a significant proportion of such expatriate Bangladeshis might be having madrassa education background. On the other hand, madrassa educated females are sent to several foreign nations under the garb of ´wife´ or ´domestic help´, who also hold the mission in the mind of causing maximum damage to non-Muslim societies.
Though most of the foreign missions in Bangladesh collect criminal background of the visa applicants prior to issuing visas, in most cases, the under-cover Jihadists manage to obtain certificate from the law enforcing agencies in exchange of bribe. Similarly, foreign missions are unable to identify the madrassa education background of the visa applicants due to lack of necessary staffs as well as naivety of the local investigators, who are hired by the foreign missions. It is also learnt that, most of such ´investigators´ compromise information in exchange of heavy amount of financial benefit.
Crime inside madrassas is nothing new. For decades, both male and females are being physically abused and tortured by the madrassa teachers and clergies in such Islamic educational institutions. Rape inside madrassas are taking place on a regular pause. It is even apprehended that, in most cases, such incidents are either reported to law enforcing agencies or escapes the attention of the people. On the other hand, as clergies enjoys almost untouchable status in the Muslim societies, most of the physically abused or raped girls and boys in the madrassas do not open their mouth fearing severe social wrath.
In 2003, the first case of rape by madrassa teacher was disclosed in the media by my newspaper Weekly Blitz, when a clergyman raped a minor girl at Chittagong Hill Tract area. Later, to avert any social action and legal consequence as well to justify the crime, the madrassa teacher told people that the girl was a Jew. But due to series of editorials and reports published in Weekly Blitz, finally the then government in Bangladesh was forced to arrest the clergyman and initiate legal actions against him. Since then, cases of rapes inside madrassas started appearing in local media.
Rape of the 10-year old minor girl child inside madrassa is the latest case of endless brutalities of the Muslim clergies and madrassa teachers. Local and international rights groups as well as the government needs to take up this matter with priority to ensure protection of the girls and boys from being physically abused or tortured by the madrassa teachers in Bangladesh.
During the late hours of Wednesday, Moulana Tofael Ahmed Osmani entered the room, where the minor girl was sleeping with other students of the madrassa. He silently lifted her on his arms and took her to his room. When the girl woke up, the Moulana whispered saying, he was going to give her some fruits as gift for her brilliance in learning Koran.
After taking the minor girl in the room, Moulana Tofael offered her a banana and locked the door. While the girl was easting the fruit, Moulana started touching private parts of the minor child and at one stage suddenly took off her clothe and started raping. Being totally terrified at such unexpected incident, the girl started calling her inmates for help. Hearing her voice, locals approached the building and entered the room by smashing the door. The minor girl was bleeding and she was immediately rushed to the nearby hospital for treatment.
Angry villagers started assaulting the rapist madrassa teacher and later they handed him over to police.
Endorsing the incident, officer-in-charge of Sylhet Kotwali Police Station, Khandaker Nowroz Ahmed told reporters that due legal actions are being taken against the rapist madrassa teacher. A case has already been lodged by the police in this regard.
It may be mentioned here that for past few years, mushroom growth of madrassas [both Koranic and kindergarten] is witnessed in Bangladesh. Most of these madrassas are funded by dubious Afro-Arab sources.
Free education, lodging and food are offered to male and female orphans particularly at kindergarten and cadet madrassas. It was already reported in local and international media that, most of the students of such kindergarten and cadet madrassas are given Jihadist indoctrination, while a large number of madrassa students are sent abroad with hidden mission of Jihad. Similarly, thousands of Madrassa students travel abroad in disguise, who also are believed to be considering non-Muslims as ´enemies of Islam´.
It may be mentioned here that, hundreds and thousands of locals go abroad with employment or tourist visas. It is speculated that, a significant proportion of such expatriate Bangladeshis might be having madrassa education background. On the other hand, madrassa educated females are sent to several foreign nations under the garb of ´wife´ or ´domestic help´, who also hold the mission in the mind of causing maximum damage to non-Muslim societies.
Though most of the foreign missions in Bangladesh collect criminal background of the visa applicants prior to issuing visas, in most cases, the under-cover Jihadists manage to obtain certificate from the law enforcing agencies in exchange of bribe. Similarly, foreign missions are unable to identify the madrassa education background of the visa applicants due to lack of necessary staffs as well as naivety of the local investigators, who are hired by the foreign missions. It is also learnt that, most of such ´investigators´ compromise information in exchange of heavy amount of financial benefit.
Crime inside madrassas is nothing new. For decades, both male and females are being physically abused and tortured by the madrassa teachers and clergies in such Islamic educational institutions. Rape inside madrassas are taking place on a regular pause. It is even apprehended that, in most cases, such incidents are either reported to law enforcing agencies or escapes the attention of the people. On the other hand, as clergies enjoys almost untouchable status in the Muslim societies, most of the physically abused or raped girls and boys in the madrassas do not open their mouth fearing severe social wrath.
In 2003, the first case of rape by madrassa teacher was disclosed in the media by my newspaper Weekly Blitz, when a clergyman raped a minor girl at Chittagong Hill Tract area. Later, to avert any social action and legal consequence as well to justify the crime, the madrassa teacher told people that the girl was a Jew. But due to series of editorials and reports published in Weekly Blitz, finally the then government in Bangladesh was forced to arrest the clergyman and initiate legal actions against him. Since then, cases of rapes inside madrassas started appearing in local media.
Rape of the 10-year old minor girl child inside madrassa is the latest case of endless brutalities of the Muslim clergies and madrassa teachers. Local and international rights groups as well as the government needs to take up this matter with priority to ensure protection of the girls and boys from being physically abused or tortured by the madrassa teachers in Bangladesh.
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