High Court receives death reference for Pallabi child rape and murder case
Legal documentation concerning the death sentence of two individuals convicted of the rape and brutal murder of an eight-year-old child in Dhaka's Pallabi area was formally submitted to the High Court on Tuesday. The files, which include the trial court’s verdict and all related evidentiary materials, were received by the High Court’s death reference division late in the afternoon.
The case involves Sohel Rana and his wife, Swapna Akter, who were sentenced to death by the Dhaka Metropolitan Tribunal for the Suppression of Violence Against Women and Children on June 7. The judicial process moved with notable speed, as the verdict was delivered only 19 days after the incident occurred.
Under established legal procedure, any capital punishment handed down by a trial court requires confirmation from the High Court through the death reference process. While the case is currently under review, the defendants maintain the right to challenge the verdict by filing appeals from prison or regular appeals. The High Court typically hears the death reference and any subsequent appeals concurrently to ensure a thorough judicial review.
The crime took place on May 19, when the victim’s dismembered body was recovered from a residential flat in Pallabi. Investigators determined that Sohel Rana fled the scene by breaking through the security grille of the bathroom shortly before the discovery of the body. His wife, Swapna Akter, was apprehended at the flat at the time of the discovery, while Rana was arrested later that evening in Fatullah, Narayanganj. The victim's father initiated the proceedings by filing a formal case at the Pallabi police station.
