Arrest in Jamalpur 20 Days After Wedding: Driver and Woman Held Over Alleged Flight With Gold Ornaments
In Melandah, Jamalpur, a municipal waste-truck driver has been accused of running away with the wife of a BNP leader just 20 days after her wedding, along with her gold ornaments. Police have arrested the driver, Emdadul Haque Archon, and the woman, Sumi Akter, in a case filed over the incident.
Archon was arrested before dawn on Friday (23 October) from a rented house in the Jamalpur municipal area. Sumi Akter was later arrested on the basis of information he provided. That afternoon, police sent both of them to court in the case filed over allegations of fraud and misappropriation of gold ornaments.
The arrested Emdadul Haque Archon (45) is the son of the late Abdul Hamid of the Shahjadpur area of Melandah upazila. He is known as Sumi Akter's so-called uncle. Sumi Akter (27) is the daughter of Shahin Mondal; her home is in the Kamdeb Bari area of the upazila.
The plaintiff in the case, Sujan, is joint general secretary of Jhaugara Union BNP. He is the son of the late Moyur Ali of the South Jhaugara area.
According to the case statement, Sujan married Sumi Akter on 1 October. At the wedding he gave his wife various gold ornaments, including two gold rings, a chain, a pair of bangles and a pair of earrings. The estimated value of the ornaments is stated in the case as Tk 696,500.
Sujan alleges that from after the wedding, Sumi's so-called uncle Archon had been inciting her in various ways. On 20 October at around 6pm, taking advantage of Sujan's absence from home, Archon went there and told Sumi he would take her to her father's house.
The complaint further states that although Sujan's mother told Sumi to go only after her son returned home, she left with Archon.
Sujan said that when he tried to contact his wife on her mobile phone that night, it was switched off. The next day he sent his younger brother's wife and his nephew to his in-laws' house, but they found no trace of Sumi. He says he later searched and learned that she had left with Archon.
After a written complaint was filed at the police station, police arrested Archon. Sumi was then detained on the basis of information he gave.
Sujan said he is devastated that such an incident has happened so soon after the wedding. In a tearful voice he said he had never imagined facing such a situation just 20 days into the marriage. He had brought his wife home with many hopes and had given gold ornaments at the wedding. Altogether, he said, he is mentally broken.
Melandah police station officer-in-charge ATM Mahmudul Haque said Emdadul Haque Archon and Sumi Akter had been arrested in the case and sent to court on Friday.
However, the judicial process on the allegations in court is still to come. Attention will now be on what emerges in the next hearing of the case and in the investigation.
