“The Bangladeshi Army personnel have been violating the rights of the indigenous peoples’ protestors and today resorted to the killing of the peaceful protestors by indiscriminate firing,” said Suhas Chakma of Rights and Risks Analysis Group. Photo: https://indigenous.arizona.edu/
A human rights group that campaigns for the protection of the civil liberties of the indigenous people of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) has called for international intervention after several tribal members died in firing by the Bangladesh Army in a crackdown on Sunday (September 28, 2025).
The incident took place after Army personnel fired upon activists of Jumma Chhatra Janata, who were demanding justice after reports of sexual violence against a girl belonging to the tribal Marma community.
“Instead of arresting the rapists, the Bangladeshi Army personnel have been violating the rights of the indigenous peoples and today resorted to the killing of the peaceful protestors by indiscriminate firing,” said Suhas Chakma of Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG).
The RRAG has said that the Bangladesh Army has been bringing in “outsiders” to settle in the CHT to change the demographics of the region. Mr. Chakma further informed that Sunday’s (September 28, 2025) killings in CHT will be taken up at the ongoing session of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva this week.
The firing took place in Khagrachhari, one of the main hill districts that constitute the ethnically diverse CHT region. The protest was triggered by September 23 reports of a gang rape of a tribal teenager.
Speaking to Daily Star, Ahsan Habib Palash, Deputy Inspector General of Chattogram Range Police, confirmed the deaths and said, “Three persons were brought dead to the Sadar Hospital by police.” The RRAG has informed that four persons were killed and several others were injured in the firing.
“The RRAG called upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene against the systematic attacks on the indigenous peoples in the Chittagong Hill Tracts by the Bangladesh Army,” the organisation said in a press note. The Chittagong Hill Tracts have witnessed multiple clashes over the last year since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in August 2024.
The Government of Bangladesh has a peace agreement with Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS) that dates to 1997, when the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government was in power. The agreement, however, has been criticised over the years as it was alleged that it failed to increase participation of indigenous communities in the government positions and also that over the years the number of “outsiders” settling in the CHT region has also increased.
Published – September 28, 2025 11:49 pm IST
