Jamā‘at Leader Expelled Following Arrest For Child Sexual Assault

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has revoked the membership and expelled a local leader in Rajshahi’s Paba upazila following his arrest for sexually assaulting a nine-year-old girl.

The expelled individual, 42-year-old Omar Farooq, served as a Rukn (member) of Ward No. 3 under Bargaschi Union Jamaat. Farooq, a rural medical practitioner who runs “Farooq Pharmacy” from his home in Bargaschi Pakarmatha village, also provided religious instruction to local children inside his residence. His brother, Abu Bakar, holds the position of Ward Secretary within the same union committee.

According to police records, the incident occurred on 12 July when the young girl visited Farooq’s house for religious lessons. Farooq reportedly dismissed the other children early, isolating the victim inside the house before assaulting her. Upon returning home, the girl’s mother noticed visible marks on her face and body. Distressed and crying, the child disclosed the assault in front of her mother and neighbours who had gathered at the residence.

Outraged villagers surrounded Farooq’s residence shortly after the details emerged, prompting him to go into hiding. Local Jamaat representatives visited the victim’s family at the time, promising swift internal disciplinary action. However, after 19 days passed without organizational or legal measures being taken against the accused, the victim’s mother lodged a formal complaint under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act at Paba Police Station on 31 July.

Officers from the Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP) arrested Farooq at his residence on the night of 1 August. Following preliminary questioning, a local court ordered his remanded custody to Rajshahi Central Jail on Sunday, 2 August.

Following the arrest, the Paba Upazila Jamaat Executive Council convened an emergency meeting on Sunday evening to formally cancel Farooq’s membership and discharge him from all organizational duties. Abdur Rahman Milon, Ameer of Bargaschi Union Jamaat, stated that an internal probe confirmed the initial credibility of the allegations. Milon emphasized that Farooq’s actions constituted severe moral turpitude directly violating party ideology, adding that the accused must face trial under the country’s prevailing legal framework.