Police early Tuesday detained a 16-year-old boy in connection with the stabbing of a secondary school examinee girl in Kushtia town on Monday.

The suspect was identified as M Emon, 16, son of Abbas Uddin, residing in East Majampur area.

Police conducted drives across the district and detained Emon at about 1:30am from his maternal aunt’s house in the Patikabari area of Kushtia Sadar upazila using technological tracking, Kushtia superintendent of police Aminul Islam said.

The victim, Zakia Sultana, 16, a Secondary School Certificate examinee, was stabbed repeatedly with a sharp knife at about 1:30pm on Monday in the Thanapara area while waiting outside the gate of her home after returning from a test examination.

Locals responded to her screams, rescued her, and rushed her to the Kushtia 250-bed General Hospital. Hospital resident medical officer Iqbal Hossain confirmed that the victim was out of danger.

The victim’s family alleged that Emon, a Class-X student at a local private school, had been harassing her for a long time. The harassment briefly stopped after the family complained to his guardians, but he launched the violent attack on Monday, her mother Sumi Akter said.

Following the incident, Emon and his mother reportedly fled their rented flat in East Majampur.

Kushtia-3 lawmaker Mufti Amir Hamza expressed concern over the attack in a social media post on Monday evening, demanding a thorough investigation, immediate legal action, and stronger safety measures for women.

Police said formal legal proceedings against the arrestee were underway.