A SHARP increase in sexual violence against children has been reported in early 2026, highlighting a deepening crisis. Rights group Ain O Salish Kendra’s data show that at least 180 rape cases were recorded in the first four months of the year and 81 of victims were under 18. Fifty-six of them were, alarmingly, girls aged below 12, including children under six. Eighteen rape cases were reported in the first 11 days of May alone and 11 of them involved minors, indicating that it is not an isolated trend. Rights organisations warn that significant under-reporting driven by stigma and fear may have deflated the actual scale. In most cases, perpetrators are known to the victims, including neighbours, relatives and sometimes teachers, exposing the extent of vulnerability within familiar spaces. Women’s rights activists attribute the persistence of such violence to a culture of impunity, weak law enforcement and slow judicial response, calling for urgent institutional reforms, strong protection mechanism and coordinated national action to safeguard children.
The recently reported rape of a minor madrassah student in Netrakona, which resulted in her pregnancy, has exposed both the deep vulnerability of children and the systemic unpreparedness to ensure their safety and protection. The victim was raped in her institution but had no place to report the suffering for about seven months until she fell ill and had a gynaecological check-up. Even after the incident of sexual violence had been exposed and a case filed, the arrest of the perpetrator was not instant. In March, after the reported rape of a 10-year-old child at a madrassah in Kushtia, Manusher Jonno Foundation issued a statement that highlighted a serious lack of oversight of educational institutions, particularly madrassahs, and underscored the urgent need for stronger accountability measures to ensure children’s safety. The concern about legal accountability was also raised recently when a study by the Supreme Court of Bangladesh and BRAC confirmed that only 3 per cent of violence against women and children cases resulted in conviction while 70 per cent ended in acquittal and 13 per cent were settled outside court. While ensuring speedy justice in rape cases remains essential, it is equally important to confront the patriarchal attitudes that normalise and perpetuate such violence.
The government must now address the structural barriers that impede justice in rape cases and identify gaps in the legal and institutional framework, ensuring that the justice process remains accessible to survivors. It should consider incorporating gender equality in primary and secondary schooling to help students acquire a healthy understanding of sexuality and awareness of the legal consequences of sexual violence. Women’s rights groups must abandon their project-based approach and engage in a long-term campaign against the culture of violence that normalises rape.
