After the
abduction, the vigilantes took him to the Guimara Army Brigade. Following the
army’s instructions, he was later released.
 |
| The abducted man, Basana Mohan Chakma |
Ramgarh
Correspondent, CHT News
Monday, 1
September 2025
Basna Mohan
Chakma (42), who was abducted on his way back from a rally in Ramgarh,
Khagrachari, was released after several hours of torture and harassment by
military-backed vigilantes.
According to
reports, around 11:45 AM today (Monday, 1 September 2025), vigilantes abducted
him from Nakaba Bazar after forcing him off a vehicle returning from the rally.
He was released at approximately 4:30 PM.
Basna Mohan
Chakma is a resident of Guja Para, Ward 2 of Joggochola Union in Manikchari
Upazila. His father’s name is Barpeda Chakma.
After his
abduction, the armed kidnappers threatened to kill him with guns and knives and
physically assaulted him while taking him away on a motorcycle.
They then
handed him over to the Guimara Army Brigade, where the army interrogated him.
After failing to find any charges against him, the army instructed the
vigilantes to release him.
After his
release, Basna Mohan described the incident:
“While
returning from the rally in Ramgarh, a group of four Bengali men, one Chakma
youth, and one Marma youth approached us at Nakaba Bazar and told me to get off
the vehicle and ride with them on a motorcycle. I refused to get off, but they
forcibly dragged me down. I resisted and escaped to another vehicle, shouting
for help. But the vigilantes came again, pointed guns at me, and dragged me out
of that vehicle too.
“I was
afraid they might shoot me, so I stopped resisting. They then took me away on
their motorcycle. A Bengali man was driving while the Chakma youth sat behind.
Along the way, they stopped multiple times to question me and ask for my
address. The Bengali man threatened to kill me with a knife, saying, ‘Nothing
will happen if I kill you.’ He also had a gun. However, the Chakma youth told
him not to harm me.
“Eventually,
I recognized the area after crossing a stream. There, someone I knew saw me and
expressed concern. The vigilantes made me sit at a shop and gave me a soft
drink and biscuits.
“Later, two
more motorcycles arrived, driven by two Bengali men. The Chakma youth stayed
behind and told me, ‘Go with them; they will release you.’
“The Bengali
men then took me to the Guimara Army Brigade. There, the army asked why and
from where I had been brought. I told them, ‘I went to the Ramgarh rally
because I was invited by UPDF people. On the way back, I was abducted at
gunpoint.’
“The army
asked me how many UPDF members were there. I said I didn’t know and that I had
only gone because I was called. Then the army said, ‘We work for the people. We
don’t harm ordinary civilians. Just stop doing the things you’re doing.’
“I told
them, ‘I’m not part of any political group. If I were, would I be dressed like
this? I’m just a common person. They brought me here for no reason.’
“The army
then asked if I had been fed. I said no. When they offered to get me food, I
refused, saying I wasn’t feeling well and had been beaten. I told them I was
beaten at the place where I was abducted. They replied, ‘That’s their business.
We don’t harm civilians.’
“The army
recorded a video of me. They asked whether the army had beaten me, and I said
no.
“After that,
the army instructed the vigilantes to release me.
“The
vigilantes then took me to their office in Guimara Bazar. There, they took
contact numbers of village elders and leaders from my phone. Then they handed
me over to the elders who had come looking for me, and I returned home.”
Basna Mohan
added that he was tied up when first taken but the bindings were removed midway
at a roadside shop. He was not tied while being taken to the brigade. He also
said he was beaten at least 10–20 times at various points along the way.
When asked
whether he recognized the abductors, he replied:
“I don’t
know all of them. But the Bengali man who beat me is named Bappi. He used to be
a lackey of Awami League’s Maizuddin. He had a knife and a gun. I believe he
lives in Goru Bazar of Manikchari Sadar.”
It is
noteworthy that earlier on Monday (1 September), the Hill Students Council
(PCP) and Democratic Youth Forum (DYF) organized a protest rally in Joutha
Khamar, Ramgarh, against repression during military operations in the
Chittagong Hill Tracts. Basna Mohan Chakma had participated in this rally.
On their way
back, the vehicles carrying participants were attacked by military-backed
vigilantes at Nakaba Bazar, and Basna Mohan Chakma was abducted.
According to
Basna Mohan, the vigilantes said their original target was to kill or abduct
two members of UPDF-affiliated organizations. Due to the scuffle with him, they
missed their target. However, they also attempted to attack Dhanou Tripura,
President of DYF Ramgarh Upazila branch, but he managed to escape unharmed.
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