chtnews.comWednesday, June 04,­ 2014

A TOTAL of twenty nine Jumma families from Nareichari in Kharachari district have taken shelter in Gandachara in the Indian state of Tripura, the All India Radio Belonia is reported to have said in its today’s morning broadcast.

However, it did not mention the cause of the exodus of so many people from the CHT.
On 21 April, the armed men belonging to Santu Larma faction of the Jana Samhati Samiti took the people of a number of villages in Nareichari along with them towards Indian border, after the area had fallen into the hands of its opponents.

At the time of their retreat, the Santu Group men had also ordered the residents of Nareichari, a remote area north of Dighinala Upazila headquarters, to abandon their villages and shut down their shops.

In the order issued in the form of a letter on 24 April, they also threatened to punish those who would violate the order.

It said, “The shopkeepers of Nareichari bazaar and its adjacent villagers are being ordered to leave the area immediately and on an urgent basis. It is also ordered that the shopkeepers must shut their shops and leave the bazaar.”

In the same order, a copy of which has been obtained by chtnews.com, the Santu loyalists had threatened those violating the order, saying: “Appropriate actions would be taken against anyone who by any chance does not leave the bazaar”.

Furthermore, they also ordered the people not to attend a meeting called by UPDF. The order said, “It is to be noted that the UPDF has called a meeting. No one is allowed to attend in the said meeting. Participation in the meeting is totally prohibited.”

On 21 April, while retreating from Nareichari, the armed terrorists taken many Jumma families from the villages of Dewan Para, Thulipara, Dawjor-Hogoiyatoli and Choddeng Chara along with them.

On 26 May, they forced the remaining families in those villages to leave their homes and took them towards Indian border.

While doing so, they fired several blank shots to create panic among the villagers.

A shopkeeper from Nareichari told chtnews.com on condition of anonymity that the Santu loyalists had taken these families to Gandachara in Tripura.

He further said that on 3 May, the Santu Larma-sponsored terrorists had burned down Nareichari bazaar, an exclusively Jumma market place, in an obvious attempt to try to deprive the UPDF of subsistence and public support.
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News No. 21/2014.