A court in Dhaka has granted bail to former managing director and CEO of Biman Bangladesh Airlines Shafiqur Rahman in a case filed over the alleged torture of an 11-year-old domestic worker.
Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court-3 Judge Moin Uddin Chowdhury issued the order on Tuesday after a hearing.
The court granted bail on a Tk5,000 bond, confirmed state prosecutor Md Zahirul Islam Kayyum.
During the hearing, defence lawyer Md Khorshed Alam argued that the accused is a “simple and innocent person” who previously held a senior position in a reputed national institution.
He also stated that Shafiqur Rahman had been in custody for 71 days since 2 February and is currently suffering from serious health issues, urging the court to consider humanitarian grounds.
According to the case documents, the victim’s father, a hotel employee, had placed his daughter Mohona in the household of Shafiqur Rahman and his wife Bithi in June last year through a security guard named Jahangir for domestic work. The family had reportedly promised to cover her education and marriage expenses.
However, the complaint alleges that the child was later subjected to repeated abuse. From 2 November, her family was reportedly denied access to meet her.
On 31 January, Bithi contacted the victim’s father and asked him to take the child away, saying she was ill. Upon reaching the residence, the father found the child in a severely injured condition, with wounds on both hands and other parts of her body, and unable to speak properly.
The child was admitted to Gazipur Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College Hospital in critical condition, where she reportedly stated that she had been regularly beaten and tortured with hot objects for minor mistakes.
Following the incident, the victim’s father filed a case with Uttara West Police Station.
Police arrested Shafiqul Rahman, his wife, and two others from their Uttara residence on 2 February.
He had remained in custody since his arrest until being granted bail on Tuesday.
