Hill Voice, 19 July 2020, Rangamati:  It has been alleged that the Rajnagar Zone of 37 BGB has taken initiative to occupy around 35 acres of land of Jumma people to turn the existing “Rangipara Helipad CIO BGB Camp” under Bagachatar Union of Longadu Upazila of Rangamati District into a sub-zone BGB camp.

According to local sources, since the zone commander Lt. Col. Nazmul Farhad visited the camp on 15 July 2020 Wednesday, the boundary of the camp has been widened and marked with putting several flags of different colors. From the day the new boundary of the camp was demarcated with the flag, both Jumma and Bengali settlers were banned from engaging in any activities on at least 35 acres of land, including cultivable paddy land within the boundary.

It is to be noted that all the lands around the Boundary, including the site of the present BGB CIO camp, are in the name of local Jumma people but dispossessed them after setting up the camp there in 2011 and Muslim settlers illegally occupied and built houses around the camp with support of BGB.

At present, the families of the Muslim settlers who have illegally occupied land of Jumma villagers in Rangipara of Bagachatar Union are-

1) Abdul Malek (52), son of deceased Shamsul Haque;

2) Abdul Fayez (50), son of late Ali Gorami;

3) Jahangir (43), son of Sultan;

4) Kamrul Islam (50), son of late Abu Musa;

5) Majid (40), son of Kader Majhi;

6) Shukkur Ali (41), son of Ahid Mia;

6) Ahid (60), son of Kader;

6) Atsar Ali (53), son of Jinnat Ali;

9) Swapan (42), son of late Naib; And

10) Ismail (29), son of Tofazzal.

There are two more settlers who have illegally grabbed the land even though they did not build the house. They are Joynal (48) and Jalal (45), two sons of the late Shamsul Haque of Rangipara.

The lands under the camp boundary are settled in the name of those Jumma people are as follows:

1) Shukra Moni Chakma, son of Paisa Ram Chakma, Holding no. R-2/29, 3.00 acres of land.

2) Bipin Mohan Chakma, son of Dina Moni Chakma, 2.00 acres of land.

3) Sumati Kumar Chakma, son of Chikon Moni Chakma, Holding no. R-41, 3.00 acres of land.

4) Kandara Chakma, son of Sappe Chakma, Holding no. R-9, 0.80 acres of land.

5) Shashi Moni Chakma, son of Paisa Ram Chakma, Holding no. R-39, 3.00 acres of land.

6) Kishta Lochan Chakma, son of Kamini Dhan Chakma, Holding no. R-32, 3.00 acres of land.

7) Giri Ranjan Chakma, son of Shishu Chandra Chakma, Holding no. 10, 3.00 acres of land.

8) Ramesh Chandra Chakma, son of Janmajay Chakma, in 4 plots total 3.00 acres of land.

9) Taparai Chakma, son of Kalauda Chakma, 2.30 acres of land.

10) Kalpataru Chakma, son of Dorbajja Chakma, Holding no. R-36, 2.00 acres of land.

11) Chandra Rekha Chakma, son of Nila Ranjan Chakma, 1.40 acres of land.

In addition, there are lands 7/8 more people in possession of settlers which have not been settled yet due to the existing situation or are in the process of settlement.

Ramesh Chandra Chakma, the owner of the land adjacent to the camp, said a fish farming dam was being built by the BGB on his land without his permission, which pond would be used by the camp. When he requested the camp commander not to build a dam on his land, the camp commander advised him to submit an application with the zone commander.

According to his advice, an application was put to the zone commander on 15 July 2020, but no reply has been received yet. Also, the land of Holding no. R-41 made settlement by Sumati Kumar Chakma on the west side of the camp was leveled with a bulldozer 20/25 days ago to make a helipad for the camp.

It may be mentioned that in violation of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord of 1997, recently the establishment of new camps and expansion of the old camps has been intensified at the initiative of the armed forces. In the last six months of 2020, three new camps have been set up at Muroghona in Mogaban Union of Rangamati, Madan Para in Aimachhara Union of Barkal and Hatimuro in Hafchhari Union of Guimara upazila.

In addition, despite the COVID-19 epidemic, there has been a worrying increase of land grabbing in the Chittagong Hill Tracts by Muslim settlers who settled down for political purposes and illegally. Attempts at land grabbing or occupation of land have resulted in the damages of 818 families, the seizure of 3,021 acres of land by Jumma villagers, the filing of two cases against the Jummas over land disputes and the arrest of two people, and the burning of about 5,000 acres of rubber plantations.