A TEENAGER whipped to death in Bangladesh for having a relationship with a married man was allegedly raped by her cousin, it has emerged.
Four Islamic clerics were arrested this week for ordering Mosammet Hena, 14, to receive 100 lashes in a fatwa or religious edict at a village in the south-western Shariatpur district.

It has now been reported that the teenage girl was raped by her married cousin and then accused of having an affair with him.

The girl collapsed after she was lashed in public with a bamboo cane around 70 times on Monday, police chief Shahidur Rahman said.

She was taken to hospital, but died hours later.

Police chief Shahidur Rahman said the 40-year-old man with whom the girl was allegedly involved was also sentenced to 100 lashes, but he fled to escape the punishment.

'We are hunting for the man,' he said.

The girl was reportedly beaten by the man’s family before the lashing sentence was passed.

‘What sort of justice is this?’ the girl's father asked the BBC.

‘My daughter has been beaten to death in the name of justice. If it had been a proper court then my daughter would not have died.’

Fatwas are illegal in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority nation governed by secular law

But Islamic clerics often preside over courts that use Sharia law and issue fatwas to deal with issues including extra-marital relationships.

Such incidents usually occur in remote villages where police are unable to gain quick access.