Ethnic minority community students under the banner of ‘Indigenous Students Council’ on Thursday formed a human chain in front of the press club in the city’s Shaheb Bazar area demanding punishment for Father Pradeep Gregory, for what they claimed, raping an ethnic minority community girl in Tanore upazila recently.
Presided over by the council’s central committee president Nakul Pahan, the programme was addressed, among others, by the council’s central general secretary Tarun Munda, its Rajshahi College unit president Savitri Hembrum, Begum Rokeya University unit’s former general secretary Uttam Kumar Mahato and Dilip Pahan.
The participants demanded maximum punishment for Father Pradeep Gregory, who allegedly raped the girl at Sadhu Jhon Mary Vianni Church in Mundumala of Tanore detaining her there for 3 days (September 26-28).
They also pushed for bringing to book Mundumala High School Headmaster Kamel Mardi as ‘he helped Father Pradeep Gregory to flee the scene and tried to cover up the matter’.
The demonstrators called for ensuring safety and security of the victim and her family.
Expressing solidarity with the council, freedom fighter and journalist Prashant Kumar Saha and Associate Professor of the Department of Folklore, Rajshahi University Dr Amirul Islam Kanak were present at the programme. Source: The Independent
