Two women tortured, driven out of houses for dowry

Two women have been driven out of their houses along with their children for failing to pay dowry in Patuakhali's Baufal and Barguna's Amtali upazilas.

Jewel Rana (32), resident of Suryamani union in Baufal, allegedly ousted his wife Nasima Akter along with his four-year-old son Sakibul Hasan in demand of Tk one lakh dowry.

Nasima, of Nurainpur village, filed a dowry case against her husband Jewel with Patuakhali Senior Judicial Magistrate's Court on August 20.

According to the case statement, Nasima and Jewel got married on February 14, 2011. As per the demand of the bridegroom, Nasima's family gave gold ornaments, furniture and other items during their wedding.

Shortly after the marriage, Jewel started to pressurise Nasima for dowry. Thinking of his sister's happiness, her elder brother Anwar used to provide money to Jewel. But the dowry-greedy husband started to torture her, the case statement said.

During a meeting between their families on August 17 this year, Jewel demanded Tk one lakh from Anwar in the name of business.

But Anwar denied the request and on the same day Jewel tortured his wife, ousted her from his house and threatened to divorce her and remarry if she did not fulfil his demands, according to the case statement.

In another incident in Barguna's Amtali upazila, Rafiqul Islam, a school teacher from North Tiakhali village, forced his wife Tania Begum to leave the house with their six-year-old daughter for refusing to pay Tk two lakh and a motorcycle in dowry.

On September 20, Tania, daughter of Khalilur Rahman, filed a case against her husband Rafiqul with Senior Judicial Magistrate's Court in the district, our Patuakhali correspondent reports.

After filing the case, Rafiqul sat in an arbitration meeting at one Salam Jomaddar's house in the area on September 28 to resolve the issue.

During the meeting, Rafiqul again demanded Tk two lakh and a motorcycle.

When Tania refused to pay, her husband beat her during the meeting. The arbitrators rescued Tania and admitted her to Kalapara Upazila Health Complex in Patuakhali, the victim said in another case statement filed on October 4 with Barguna Women and Child repression control Tribunal.