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Tribesmen-Bengali settlers clash erupts in CHT

Three killed, Section144 imposed

Published : Saturday, 21 September, 2024 at 12:00 AM  Count : 328
Staff Correspondent
The district administrations of Khagrachhari and Rangamati have imposed Section 144 in Khagrachhari Sadar Upazila and Rangamati municipal area as violence escalated in those areas Thursday  and Friday. 

Our Khagrachhari Correspondent reports three people have died and several others have been injured amid clashes between Bengalis and ethnic minority groups in Khagrachhari's Dighinala and Sadar Upazilas. 

Ahsan Habib Palash, Deputy Inspector General of Police Chattogram Range, confirmed the incident. The dead have been identified as Dhananjay Chakma, 50, Rubel Tripura, 25, and Junan Chakma, 20.

Dhananjay was injured in Dighinala and Rubel and Junan in the Sadar Upazila, the police official said. "They were then rushed to the Khagrachhari Modern Sadar Hospital."

"There, Dhananjay died while receiving treatment at 10:30pm on Thursday, while Rubel and Junan died around 1:30am." 

Khagrachhari Deputy Commissioner Md Shahiduzzaman says that Section 144 has been imposed in the Khagrachhari municipal town and the district's Sadar area from 2:00pm on Friday to bring a halt to the violence. "The district administration has taken the step to stop all kinds of violence," he said.

A fire started at a local market in Khagrachhari's Dighinala on Thursday during a clash between 'ethnic minority groups and Bengalis.'

"There was unrest between the hill ethnic minorities and Bengalis," said Arefin Jewel, the Superintendent of Police for the district. "The clashes started there on Thursday. There were chases and counter-chases between the two sides and stores were torched."

Locals say that students from Dighinala Degree College launched a protest march on Thursday afternoon after a man called Mamun was killed in a 'mass beating' over suspicions of theft on Wednesday morning.

A clash began at one point during the protest march. Then, one side set fire to stores in Larma Square. The victims of the fire say that 60 to 70 stores were burnt down by the blaze.

After the incident, locals say the sounds of gunfire could be heard throughout the night. This created panic among residents in the Sadar area and other parts of the district.

The sounds of heavy gunfire were heard around 10:30pm on Thursday night in the district town's Narankkhaiya and Shanirbhar areas. The gunfire could be heard intermittently until very late. 

"At least nine people with injuries were brought to the hospital. Most of them came in from the Sadar Upazila in the night. Three of them have died."

"Four others in critical condition have been sent to Chittagong Medical College for treatment. One of them is a Bengali."

The bodies of the three people killed are at the Sadar Hospital morgue. The cause of their deaths would be determined after autopsies, the RMO said.

Meanwhile, law enforcers have inspected the scene after the clash between the two sides in Khagrachhari.

The Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police, and Dighinala Army Zonal Commander went to the Larma Square market area on Friday morning to inspect the damaged stores and businesses and to speak with local representatives. Deputy Commissioner Md Shahiduzzaman called on everyone to remain calm.

"I urge hill tribesmen and Bengalis to remain united so that such an incident does not happen again," the DC said.

At least 102 stores were burnt down completely in Thursday's fire, he said. Initially, the damage was estimated at tens of millions of taka. A list of the victims will be compiled and the district administration will provide them with support, he said.

Our Rangamati Correspondent writes after fatal clashes between ethnic minority groups and Bengalis in Khagrachhari, violence has now spread to Rangamati, another hill town, leaving at least one person dead and 50 others injured.

Tension has escalated in Rangamati and neighbouring troubled district of Khagrachari. Reports indicate clashes and counter-clashes in the district town, resulting in injuries and casualties.

One person has been confirmed dead, with at least fifty others injured, although the identity of the deceased has not yet been revealed. 

This was confirmed by Dr Sadia Akhtar, Duty Doctor of Rangamati General Hospital. 

To maintain order, District Commissioner Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain Khan announced the imposition of Section 144 in the Rangamati municipal area.

The local administration consequently banned all public gatherings in the Rangamati municipal area on Friday afternoon, according to the district's Deputy Commissioner Mosharraf Hossain.

The prohibitive order under Section 144 of The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 was issued in the wake of a series of clashes, acts of vandalism, and arson attacks involving the two groups.

According to witnesses, thousands of hill tribe members took out a procession from the town's gymnasium square on Friday morning to protest the clashes and deaths in Khagrachhari.

When the procession reached Banrupa, some shops owned by Bengalis and the Banrupa Mosque were vandalised, allegedly in retaliation for stones being hurled at the march. During the unrest, protesters also damaged several buses, trucks, and autorickshaws.

Bengalis, armed with sticks, responded by chasing the protesters, leading to more chases and counter-chases.

In retaliation, the Maitree Vihar, a Buddhist temple in Kathaltoli, was heavily damaged, and at least two businesses owned by the minority community in Banrupa were set on fire. At one point, both groups took up positions on opposite sides of the town's Happy Mor area.

"As the hill tribesmen were returning from their procession in Banrupa, they attacked and vandalised Bengali-owned businesses and the Banrupa Mosque without provocation, damaging several vehicles," said Councillor Jamal Uddin of Rangamati Municipality's Ward No. 8.

"Following this, Bengali businessmen organised and retaliated, resulting in further chases and clashes."

At least 50 people with injuries were brought to the Rangamati Sadar Hospital, said Sadia Akter, a doctor at the hospital's emergency department. 

One of the injured has since died while undergoing treatment while six to seven are in critical condition, the doctor said.

Their names and identities are yet to be confirmed. Additionally, internet service in the town has been disrupted as fiber-optic cables were damaged in a fire, according to Md Shaheen, director of internet provider Yes Net.

Law enforcement officials said that joint patrol teams, including the police, army, and BGB, have started working to restore normalcy in Rangamati.



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