Couple in Naogaon allegedly smeared with ink, garlanded with shoes and driven out for marriage to sister-in-law

A young man named Masud Rana (35) has married his sister-in-law Purnima (21) in Naogaon. After the marriage, locals have been accused of smearing ink on the couple's faces, garlanding them with shoes and driving them out of the area.

Masud Rana married Purnima on Sunday evening (25 October) with the consent of the family and the permission of his first wife Mousumi (28), it has been learned.

Masud Rana is a resident of Naogaon Sadar upazila. He works as a lawyer's assistant at Naogaon Judge Court. The homes of both his wives are in Narayanpur village of Mohadevpur upazila.

After the marriage, Masud Rana and Purnima published news of their wedding on Facebook. Once it became known, discussion and criticism began among locals. Eventually the marriage was also reported in various media.

After the marriage news became public, Naogaon Judge Court lawyer Md Shahin Kadir Dollar relieved Masud Rana of all activities of his chamber and declared him unwanted.

Separately, when the couple went to live in a rented house in Bairagipara of Sadar union in Badalgachhi upazila, several local people allegedly obstructed and threatened them.

Later, at around 6:30pm on Monday (26 October), Masud Rana and Purnima left Badalgachhi with their belongings and went to his in-laws' house in Mohadevpur. It is alleged that there too some local people smeared ink on their faces, garlanded them with shoes and forced them to leave the area.

Masud Rana's mother said she saw the ink-smearing and shoe-garlanding of her son through Facebook. Since then there has been no contact with her son at all. If her son had committed any offence, there are laws and courts for that — why would locals punish him, she asked, demanding her son back and justice against those who beat him.

Reached by phone, Masud Rana said he had made this marriage with the consent of the family and his first wife. After the marriage he had faced humiliation in society in various ways. Most recently his elder wife had divorced him. Even after that he could not return to his family and society and was being harassed in various ways, he said.

Naogaon Judge Court lawyer B M Abdul Bari said what Masud Rana had done was against Muslim sharia and the law of Bangladesh was not outside Muslim sharia. But the way he was being humiliated was not right at all. For any offence he had committed there are laws and courts; no one can take the law into their own hands, he added.