The High Court yesterday ordered the government to inform it by April 20 about the steps taken against the rape and forceful eviction of the victim's family in Bogra through an arbitration.

It came up with the order on a suo moto motion following a report published in The Daily Star yesterday.

The report said a sexagenarian had raped a six-year-old girl twice at Boro Derahar village in Nandigram upazila and drove the victim's family off their house quietly through village arbitration.

In the so-called arbitration in February, accused Ahmad Ali, 62, was only asked to give the victim a compensation ofTk 30,000.

The arbitrators said the girl had been tainted and should not be allowed to live at her home.

Mamun Master, Abdul Gafur and Ansar Ali were among the arbitrators. They are on good terms with the influential Ahmad, a neighbour of the victim.

The girl had to move to her aunt's house at Telihara village of Sadar upazila. She got only Tk 5,000 in compensation from the accused, according to the report.

Yesterday, the HG bench of Justice Quazi Reza-UI Hoque and Justice ABM Altaf Hossain also issued a rule upon the government officials concerned to explain why the incident of rape of the child and the holding of the village arbitration to settle the issue should not be declared illegal.

In the rule, it also asked the officials why appropriate legal action should not be taken against the persons responsible for the incident, Deputy Attorney General Biswojit Roy told The Daily Star.

The Home secretary, IGP, deputy commissioner and superintendent of police of Bogra and officer-in-charge of Nandigram Police Station have been made respondents to the rule, he said.