Widow mercilessly whipped after fatwa

Comilla, Bangladesh, July 08 — Piara Begum (age 40), a widow, and Mamun Miah (age 25), from the Debidwar Upazila (subdistrict) in the Comilla district in southeastern Bangladesh, were mercilessly whipped after a fatwa decree.

Piara Begum’s husband had died five years earlier, leaving behind five children. Locals said that, after the death of her husband, Piara developed illegal intimate relations with her neighbor, Mamun Miah. On June 19, late at night, some young people of the Khaiyar village found Piara in an intimate situation in Mamun’s room, locals said.

The villagers called for arbitration the night of June 20, and the assistant super of the Debidwar Dakhil Madrasa, Mawlānā Md Manirul Islam, ordered a fatwa (religious edict) that both Piara and Mamun be fined Tk 30,000 each, that Mamun will marry Piara, and that, for their alleged involvement in activities against society, Piara be whipped 202 times and Mamun 101 times, locals said

On June 20, at night, Piara was whipped 202 times and Mamun 101 times. Piara was whipped mercilessly until she lost consciousness. After her public ordeal and soon after the lashings, she was taken to the Debidwar Upazila Health Complex. The doctor that treated Piara said, “Her condition was critical. I was shocked at the brutality of the treatment.”

The arbitration council was presided over by Dudmiah, while Wahed and Jalil executed the whippings, locals said.

Piara Begum filed a case with the Debidwar police station, accusing 8 people specifically and 10 to 12 unidentified people.

The arrestees are Dakhil Madrasa Assistant Super Moulana Mohammad Manirul Islam, Dudmiah, Ibrahim, Wahed, Jalil, and Mamun, the victim. All six were produced before the Comilla court.

In a landmark judgment in 2001, the Bangladesh High Court declared that fatwas were illegal, resulting in violence.