At least three people killed and several others were injured as violence broke out in parts of the southeastern Bangladesh hills between aboriginal tribesmen and the settler Bengali community over alleged gang rape of a tribal girl. Police confirmed the deaths of three men without elaborating on their identities, while residents and witnesses said both feuding sides turned violent, setting ablaze each other’s businesses and households in Khagrachhari hill district, some 270 kilometres northeast of Dhaka on the motorway.
Home Ministry expresses sorrow over violence
"The Ministry of Home Affairs has expressed deep sorrow over the incident in which three hill people were killed and 13 army personnel, including a major, three policemen, including the OC of Guimara Police Station and many others were injured in an attack by miscreants in Guimara Upazila of Khagrachhari district", the government said in a statement.
"The ministry has assured that legal action will be taken against those involved in this incident after an investigation very soon. No culprit will be spared", it added.
Why did violence break out in Dhaka
The violence broke out following an alleged gang rape of an eighth-grade schoolgirl in Khagrachhari district on Tuesday, one of the three hill districts of Chittagong Hill Tracts bordering India and Myanmar.
Giving details, the Bengladesh Home Ministry in Dhaka said 13 army personnel and three policemen were injured in the violence.
The violence first erupted in Khagrachhari district headquarters, where the aboriginal people, mostly belonging to Chakma and Marma tribes on Saturday enforced a roadblock with burning tyres, tree trunks and bricks, prompting authorities to enforce movement restrictions and rallies
Three deaths reported from Guimara area
However, the three deaths were reported from the Guimara area, 36 kilometres south of Khagrachhari, as the violence spread beyond the district headquarters despite patrols by military and paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) troops alongside police.
The girl was allegedly gang raped on her way from a private tuition and was reportedly found by her parents and neighbours at around midnight in an unconscious state in an isolated area in the town.
She was treated at a local hospital while police later arrested a Bengali teenager with military assistance. He is suspected to be one of the rapists and is now being interrogated on a six-day remand on a court order.
Section 144 imposed in Khagrachhari district
The district administration on Saturday enforced Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) banning organised movements and rallies at Khagrachhari district headquarters and its suburban townships but the restrictions largely failed to quell the unrest.
“Three people were killed in gunshots at Guimara. Their bodies have been kept at Khagrachhari Sadar Hospital,” police’s deputy inspector general Ahsan Habib told reporters.
(With inputs from agencies)
