Staff Correspondent

The eight-year-old Magura rape victim, now undergoing treatment at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka, is expected to need at least two more days for any notable improvement in her condition.

“We expect her condition to improve within the next two days. Today, she was able to open her eyes,” Abul Kalam Azad Majumdar, deputy press secretary of the chief adviser, quoted doctors involved in the victim’s treatment process.

While talking to reporters during a press conference held at the Bangladesh Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka on Monday, Azad told a questioner that doctors have inserted chest tube through a surgery due to air accumulating in her lung.

Earlier on Saturday, the third-grader, who was raped in Magura last Wednesday, was shifted to the CMH from Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DRMCH) for advanced treatment as her condition deteriorated.

Doctors are doing everything possible to save the life of the young victim, he said.

The minor girl met the tragedy when she was visiting her elder sister’s house in Magura town during the Ramadan school vacation. Someone found the girl alone at the house after her rape, said the victim’s mother.

Police have detained the victim's brother-in-law and his father but have not yet confirmed whether they would be charged with rape.

On Thursday morning, the victim’s sister's mother-in-law took her to a hospital, after which neighbours informed the child’s parents, who reside in a different upazila of the district.

While talking to reporters, doctors of Magura Sadar Hospital said that the girl was bleeding from her vagina, had strangulation marks on her neck and scratches on various parts of her body.

Ayub Ali, officer-in-charge of Magura Sadar Police Station, said that police were actively investigating the case.

Meanwhile, the victim’s mother filed a case with the police station this afternoon against the victim’s brother-in-law, his brother, and their parents in connection with the incident.

All the accused are currently in police custody and have already been produced before a court, duty officer of the police station told the Daily Sun this evening.

According to the case statement, the victim’s elder sister married a young man of Magura Municipality four months ago.

The victim’s sister, her husband, father-in-law, mother-in-law, and brother-in-law lived in the same house.

Since the marriage, the father-in-law of the victim’s elder sister had tried to build up an unethical relationship with his daughter-in-law and other family members were aware of the incident.

And, the incident led to a quarrel within the family amid the situation, the eight-year-old child went to visit her sister’s in-laws’ house on 1 March, said the case statement.