Sixteen defendants in the case of a female student who was burned to death after reporting sexual harassment in Bangladesh in 2019 were sentenced on appeal. Former principal SM Siraj Ud Daula received the death penalty, as in the first trial, and four accomplices were sentenced to life imprisonment. The remaining ten were acquitted. The victim reported sexual harassment by Daula, who was the principal at the time, to the police. However, Daula forced her to withdraw the complaint through acquaintances and threatened to kill her if she refused. Ultimately, the victim was burned to death on the school rooftop. This incident caused widespread outrage across Bangladesh.
