Bangladesh News

Only hours after all marriage rituals were over and newly wed Sabina and Khairul were in their room, a piercing scream ripped through the dead of night, waking up everyone. No one had ever heard such a scream from a bride’s room on her wedding night.

The bride, Sabina Yasmin, 20, did not have a nightmare. Someone had just poured acid all over her body while she and her husband were asleep.

Just 12 hours of entering conjugal life, Sabina fell victim to the revenge of some people who had long dispute with her husband’s family.

When she was supposed to spend happy moments amid the in-laws, acid victim Sabina–with 55 percent of her body burnt–is now fighting for life on the second floor of the Burn Unit of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH).

Daughter of Giasuddin of Dighol Kolla under Karimganj upazila of Kishoreganj, Sabina was married to Khairul Islam of Tumni Pitua of the same upazila on January 18.

With severe acid-burns she was rushed to Kishoreganj Sadar Hospital in the early hours of January 19 and was later shifted to DMCH.

Dr Samanta Lal Sen, project director of DMCH Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit, told The Daily Star on Wednesday, “It is a major acid burn injury. The patient has 55 percent of her body burnt. Her right eye is seriously affected. Even if she survives, she will face a lot of complexities.”

The treatment will cost a huge amount of money, hospital sources said.

Meanwhile, Nadia Akhter, Sabina’s sister-in-law who is attending Sabina at DMCH, said while a large amount of money has already been spent for the treatment, they could not buy many medicines due to financial hardship.

Sabina’s husband, whose hands were also burnt, said he woke up hearing Sabina’s scream around 2:00am.

He said he saw three men having “physical similarity” with neighbouring Milon, Golap and Manju–three brothers–exiting from the room through a hole they had dug to sneak into the room.

Nadia said Khairul had illicit affairs with neighbouring Hawa Begum, wife of Milon and mother of three children. When their relationship became known Hawa’s family was about to break, but she was finally able to escape a divorce.

The two families also had land-related feuds for a long time, Nadia said.

Khairul’s alleged involvement with Hawa and the land dispute might have instigated revenge in Hawa’s family members, she told The Daily Star, adding that they used to often threaten Khairul’s family with “such revenge that he will suffer throughout his life”.

All the three–Milon, Golap and Manju, however, attended the marriage ceremony so that nobody suspects their involvement in the incident, Nadia added.

When asked if she knew about her husband’s illicit affair, Sabina said they did not know anything. She said she is the second among five sisters and her poor father hurriedly arranged her marriage.

A case was filed with Karimganj Police Station naming Milon, his wife Hawa Begum and brothers Golap and Manju. All four have been absconding since the incident.