Two children were rescued from a locked fifth-floor apartment in a six-storey building in Jamalpur city’s Shekher Vita rail crossing area on Sunday morning after passers-by heard them crying for water. The children, aged 10 and five, were found alive in a room whose door was bolted from outside. In another room, residents found the body of their mother, Israt Jahan, and police later recovered it.

Residents said the apartment’s main door had been locked from outside. They informed the building owner, who joined them in breaking the lock and entering the flat. Police said the children are the offspring of Israt Jahan and her former husband, Kawsar Ahammed Shawon, who had died. Following the incident, police collected evidence from the apartment and placed the children in safe custody.

Police said Israt Jahan had been living in the rented apartment with a man she had reportedly married secretly after her former husband’s death. The owner could not provide his identity, address or details of how long he had lived there. Her current husband was not found after the incident. Police sent the body to Jamalpur General Hospital morgue and said they are investigating the cause of death and the man’s possible involvement.