A court has sentenced the primary defendant, Bidhan Chandra, to death in the murder case of a 7-year-old schoolgirl from Folimari village, Aditmari upazila, Lalmonirhat. The case’s two other defendants, Ranjit Kumar Roy and Mamata Rani, were each sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment.
Lalmonirhat Sessions Judge Md Haidar Ali delivered the verdict Sunday, August 23. The verdict came just six working days after the case was transferred to the Sessions Court for trial.
According to court sources, the victim’s father, Nalani Mohan Barman, filed a murder case naming three people as accused at Aditmari police station on June 16, 2026.
According to the case, the defendants killed the child in a premeditated act at some point between 3 p.m. on June 15 and 6 a.m. on June 16. They then buried the body in a corn field belonging to a man identified as Jabed Ali in the same village in an attempt to conceal it.
After the case was filed, Sub-Inspector Abu Sayed Md Ayub Tuhin of Aditmari police station was assigned to investigate. During the investigation, when the defendants were arrested, primary defendant Bidhan Chandra gave a confessional statement under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Based on the information he provided, the victim’s body was recovered from the corn field, along with a spade and other evidence.
After completing the investigation, police submitted a charge sheet to the court against the defendants under Sections 302, 404, 201 and 34 of the Penal Code. The case reached the Lalmonirhat Sessions Court for trial on August 13, and the court took cognizance of the charges that same day. Charges were framed against the defendants on August 16.
Testimony from a total of 23 witnesses was then recorded on August 17, 18 and 19. The defendants were examined under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure on August 20, and after hearing arguments from both sides, August 23 was set as the verdict date.
In the verdict, the court found primary defendant Bidhan Chandra guilty under Section 302 of the Penal Code and sentenced him to death, along with a fine of 20,000 taka, with a further six months’ simple imprisonment in default of payment. He was also sentenced to three years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 5,000 taka under Section 404 of the Penal Code, with a further one month’s simple imprisonment in default. These two sentences will run concurrently.
The other two defendants, Ranjit Kumar Roy and Mamata Rani, were each sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 5,000 taka under Sections 201/34 of the Penal Code, with a further three months’ simple imprisonment each in default of payment.
The verdict further states that Bidhan Chandra, who received the death sentence, may appeal to the High Court Division within seven days of the verdict date if he wishes. The death sentence will be carried out subject to High Court Division approval under Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
After the verdict was announced, all three defendants were ordered sent to Lalmonirhat District Jail under a conviction warrant. The verdict also states that the time the defendants spent in custody during the trial will be deducted from their prison terms.
Advocate Humayun Reza Swapan, public prosecutor at the Lalmonirhat court, said the court delivered its verdict in this closely watched murder case in a short span of time, and that the plaintiff’s side has expressed satisfaction with the verdict.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report