Ukyanu Marma
Khagrachari Correspondent, CHT News
Friday, September 26, 2025
Members of the Bangladesh Army picked up student leader Ukyanu Marma
from Madhupur Bazar in Khagrachari Sadar on Thursday night (September 25,
2025), around 8:30 PM. He was released later that night, around 9:45 PM, from
the cantonment.
As news of his abduction spread, students and locals from areas
including Singinala and Pankhaiyapara took to the streets and began marching
towards Khagrachari town. The incident also sparked strong reactions on social
media.
After learning that Ukyanu Marma had been released, the agitated
crowd rushed to Pankhaiyapara. There, in front of the protesters, Ukyonu Marma
gave a statement.
Mr. Marma said:
“I was eating mundi (a local dish) at a shop near Madhupur Bazar.
People nearby saw how I was taken away.
I was forcibly dragged and shoved into a military vehicle. My shirt
and pants were torn in the process. They took me by force.
I was brought to the cantonment and made to sit in front of the zone
commander. I had some conversations with him. Two other high-ranking military
officers were also present. They did not harm me there. But during the drive
from Madhupur Bazar, I was beaten inside the vehicle.
I spoke with the zone commander for about an hour. I told him that
Durga Puja is coming up soon. The longer you keep me here, the more unrest may
occur outside. He acknowledged this.
I then told the zone commander that I was placing my trust in him
and requested that he personally ensure I was returned to where I had been
taken from. After that, the zone commander dropped me off in Mahajan Para in
his own vehicle. From there, a DGFI officer took me by auto-rickshaw to
Pankhaiyapara.”
He added:
“Being abducted in this way is highly condemnable. We do not expect
this kind of behavior from any security force. We know the character of each
force in Bangladesh.
The zone commander told me that people can speak on various matters
concerning the Chittagong Hill Tracts — but also implied there are limits to
what can and cannot be said.
I presented my arguments. I spoke to him without fear.”
He further said:
“They treated the injuries on my hand. My sandals probably fell off
in Madhupur, so they gave me a new pair. Since my shirt was torn during the
dragging, they also gave me a new shirt to wear.”
At that point, he showed his torn shirt to the crowd, who then began
chanting slogans and protesting the abuse.
Expressing gratitude to the gathered protesters, he urged everyone
to participate in Friday’s mass rally against rape and violence against women.
He concluded by saying:
“I stand with you, with the hills, and with the people.”
Ukyanu Marma is the General Secretary of the Khagrachari District
branch of the Bangladesh Marma Students’ Council (BMSC).
He was one of the student leaders who led Thursday’s half-day road
blockade in Khagrachari, called by Jumma student groups to protest the rape of
a Marma teenage girl.
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