Life chained to agony

Parul

Neihbours and villagers call her 'pagli' (mad).

Her poor day labourer father Abdus Samad says he has no money for her treatment.

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This correspondent along with some newsmen visited her at Baruihati-Rasulpur village in Bagmara upazila recently and came to know the tragic tale behind her present condition.

Poor Abdus Samad is the only bread earner for his family with five sons and daughters. They are having very hard days.

One day, in early 1998, a wealthy man in the village proposed Samad that Parul could work at his house as a maid. Samad readily accepted as his Parul would be well-fed and also earn some money.

"The offer of three meals a day for Parul and money in the month-end came to us as a blessing at the time", Samad said wiping tears.

Parul was also happy at her master's house and so was the houseowner.

But within a few days, the eyes of the house owner's son Sayem fell on her. The young man succeeded to seduce her, promising marriage.

"My daughter loved him seriously, but he deceived her", Samad claimed.

She became pregnant.

She started pressing Sayem for marriage.

One day, he took her to Atrai in Naogaon in the name of court marriage and forced her to undergo abortion.

Returning home, Parul informed the matter to the Sayem's parents. They drove her out the next day and she returned to her parents.

A number of arbitration meetings were held at the village but nothing went in her favour as Sayem's family was influential, Samad said.

Parul's mother Raheda went to the local police station to file a case, but police declined to record any case.

She then filed a rape case against Sayem with a Magistrate Court in Rajshahi on May 6, 1999.

The local police station, allegedly at the influence of Sayem's family, submitted a final report and the case was dismissed.

Deceived and not getting justice, Parul became mentally retarded.

Samad sold the only land and arranged her treatment at Pabna Mental Hospital.

She returned home cured after six months.

Following her recovery, she was married to one Saidul Islam of Shingara village in Atrai upazila.

But Parul was fate obsessed.

Her husband and his family started torturing her physically for dowry.

One day, after a severe beating, she started talking irrelevant. This mounted the torture. She became mentally retarded again. Her in-laws kept her at her father's house about a year ago.

Now Samad has nothing to sell for her treatment.

During the visit on September 15, she was found chained with a tree in the backyard of the house. At night she is brought to the thatched house and kept chained, her parents said.

"What else I can do?" Samad said.

Her brother Rahidul said, earlier, whenever freed, she used to run towards Sayem's house.

"Sayem loves me, take me to him," Abul Kalam, a villager quoted her as saying once.

Officials at Bagmara thana said the policemen who were there one year ago have been transferred and they can not say anything about he matter.

At Sayem's house, none was found to comment on the matter.