HC hearing set for today

The High Court (HC) will hear today the death reference and jail appeals of Sohel Rana and Swapna Khatun, who were sentenced to death for raping and murdering seven-year-old Ramisa in Dhaka’s Pallabi area.

According to the Supreme Court’s daily cause list, the case is scheduled at serial No 22 before a bench comprising Justice Bhishmadev Chakrabortty and Justice KM Rasheduzzaman Raja.

The High Court is set to examine the death sentences handed down to Sohel Rana and Swapna Khatun for the rape and murder of seven-year-old Ramisa, with the hearing scheduled for today.

The death reference was sent to the High Court for confirmation after the Dhaka Metropolitan Children Violence Prevention Tribunal sentenced the two accused to death on 7 June 2026. Sohel and Swapna subsequently filed jail appeals challenging the verdict.

Ramisa, a second-grade student of Popular Model High School, was found beheaded on 19 May at the home of neighbours Sohel and Swapna in Pallabi.

After the killing, Sohel Rana escaped by cutting the iron bars of a room window. Police arrested Swapna Khatun after receiving a call through the national emergency service 999.

Ramisa’s father filed a case against the couple and an unidentified person the following day.
Sohel was later arrested in front of Fatullah Police Station in Narayanganj.

On 21 May, Sohel gave a confessional statement before a court under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Both accused were subsequently sent to jail.

Pallabi Police Station Sub-Inspector Ahiduzzaman, who also investigated the case, submitted the charge sheet against Sohel and Swapna on 25 May. The case was transferred to the tribunal on the same day.

The formal trial began on 1 June with the framing of charges. The prosecution produced 16 witnesses on 2 June, completing their testimony in a single day.

The accused were examined under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure on 3 June.
Four days later, on 7 June, the tribunal sentenced both convicts to death – just 19 days after Ramisa’s murder.

The tribunal ordered that Sohel and Swapna be hanged until death under Section 368 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, subject to confirmation by the High Court under Section 374.

Alongside the death sentences, the tribunal fined Sohel Tk5 lakh and Swapna Tk2 lakh, ordering that the money be paid to Ramisa’s legal heirs.

The tribunal also ordered the district collector’s office to attach and auction the convicts’ movable and immovable property if the fines remain unpaid.

The High Court’s confirmation of the death reference will now determine whether the tribunal’s death sentences can be carried out.