A legal petition has been submitted to the High Court, requesting an order to outlaw the practice of a convicted rapist marrying the individual he assaulted. The filing contends that these unions make a mockery of the judicial process and treat sexual violence as acceptable.
Advocate Md Rakibul Hasan, who lives in Sirajganj, submitted this public interest litigation on Wednesday, 22 October.
The bench comprising Justice Fahmida Quader and Justice Md Ashif Hasan is anticipated to take up the matter this week.
Listed as respondents are the heads of the home, law, women and children affairs, and social welfare ministries, in addition to the inspector general of police, the director general of prisons, and the Supreme Court’s registrar general.
Hasan included multiple press clippings that document occurrences of convicts marrying their victims, citing a recent example related to singer Mainul Ahsan Noble.
As reported, Noble married the woman who had accused him of rape at the entrance of Keraniganj Central Jail, with the prison administration overseeing the event after he received authorisation from the court. The legal proceedings against him are still ongoing.
The filing denounces the manner in which certain media channels presented the event as a positive outcome, sharing congratulatory stories and images. It maintains that these marriages essentially validate the act of rape, providing a path for criminals to secure bail or avoid punishment via a settlement.
It also denounced the custom of addressing rape accusations through mediation, coerced marriages, or unofficial agreements, cautioning that such methods encourage criminal behaviour and sustain a culture of lawlessness.
“Organising such marriages at a prison gate under official supervision is highly condemnable,” the petition states.
“Marriage cannot erase the crime of rape. Even with the survivor’s consent, the offense remains defined as a crime under law.”
