CHT News Desk
Monday, September 29, 2025
Three Paharis (hill people) were killed and at least 30 were injured in an attack by the Army and settlers in Ramesu Para, Guimara Upazila, Khagrachari district. Additionally, due to arson committed by settlers, the Ramesu Bazar and several surrounding homes were completely reduced to ashes.
The attack occurred yesterday, Sunday (September 28, 2025), without any provocation, while a peaceful blockade was being observed at the call of the Jumma Students and Public.
They were carrying out this blockade program to demand the arrest and punishment of all those involved in the gang-rape of a Marma teenager in Singinala, Khagrachari Municipality, and to protest the settler attack in Khagrachari Sadar.
It is reported that during the blockade in the Ramesu Bazar area of Guimara Upazila, Khagrachari, the Army and settler Bengalis attacked the student-protesters, opened fire, and looted and set fire to the market shops and houses.
It is alleged that the terrorists of the Army-backed Mottaleb Bahini vigilantes also joined the attack with the Army-settlers and fired upon the students and public.
Three individuals were killed on the spot by the bullets of the Army-terrorists, and at least 30 people, including 3 women, were injured, many of whom are said to have serious injuries.
The identities of the three deceased are known:
- Thoaiching Marma (25), son of Hlachai Marma, village – Bottala Para, Hafchhari, Guimara, a driver by profession;
- Akhra Marma (24), father’s name Apru Marma, village – Sainguli Para, Baropilak, Guimara; and
- Athuipru Marma (26), father’s name Nam Thoaiahlaong Marma, village – Lichu Bagan, Hafchhari, Guimara.
Many of the injured are undergoing treatment at Khagrachari Sadar Hospital, with one person being referred to Chattogram (Chittagong). It is also known that many of the injured are receiving treatment in the area without going to the hospital out of fear. The list of injured includes a mentally disabled woman.
Settlers burned down the Ramesu Bazar in the presence of Army personnel. This resulted in damages amounting to several crores of Taka.
Sequence of Events
On September 27, during a day-long blockade in Khagrachari district, settlers attacked student-protesters in the Khagrachari Sadar Upazila Parishad area. The tense situation led the administration to impose Section 144 across Khagrachari Municipality and Upazila from 2 PM. However, even amidst the curfew, settlers attacked Paharis and vandalized shops in Mahajan Para and the Yongdo Buddhist Monastery area of Pankhaiya Para. Three Pahari youths were severely wounded by being hacked.
The Guimara Upazila administration also imposed Section 144 on the same day, although no untoward incident had occurred there.
In response to the attack in Khagrachari Sadar, the Jumma Students and Public announced an indifinite road blockade program starting from September 28, demanding the arrest and punishment of the teenage girl’s rapists (their earlier demand) and protesting the attack.
Subsequently, yesterday (September 28) morning, students and the public began the blockade program in the Ramesu Bazar area of Guimara, on the road in front of the Guimara Town Hall, by burning tires and placing logs. They were observing the blockade completely peacefully, but around noon, an Army team arrived and spoke with the protesters. In a video published on social media, the soldiers could be heard telling the protesters that one rapist had already been arrested and taken on remand. They said it would take some time to arrest the remaining rapists. They also informed the protesters about the imposition of Section 144 and asked them to clear the road. The students and public then raised the issues of the rapists’ arrest and the attack in Khagrachari Sadar, and maintained the blockade. An argument ensued between them for quite some time.
At one point, Army members advanced, entered the crowd of students and public, and began a baton charge. The students and public scattered and fled. As the agitated students and public tried to resist, a group of settlers and a gang of Army-backed Mottaleb Bahini vigilantes arrived at the scene. Immediately, settlers began setting fire to the shops in Ramesu Bazar, and the Army and the vigilantes fired indiscriminately upon the students and public. One by one, people were shot and injured. A horrific situation unfolded. Many scattered, trying to save themselves, and others fell to the ground, wounded.
On the other side, settlers continued to set fire to the shops in Ramesu Bazar with equal intensity. All the market shops and the surrounding Pahari houses were burned down. At least 50 shops and 16 houses were gutted. Additionally, settlers burned 16 Pahari motorcycles and 1 Mahendra (three-wheeler) vehicle that were parked in the market.
A 19-second video posted on social media shows settlers shouting “Allahu Akbar, Naraye Takbir” alongside the Army, while the Army brazenly fires with automatic weapons.
After the attack, when the soldiers left, the Mottaleb Bahini vigilantes took up armed positions in Ramesu Bazar. This made it difficult to rescue the dead and injured. Later, after the Khagrachari District Administration was informed, the police arrived in the afternoon and recovered the three bodies.
Current Situation
Following yesterday’s attack, the Army and law enforcement agencies are carrying out various activities. They are conducting surveillance using drones. Soldiers remained stationed in the Ramesu Bazar area throughout the night. It is known that they are still present in the Ramesu Bazar area today (Monday) as well.
Locals report that members of the Army and law enforcement agencies are currently patrolling in vehicles at every intersection in the Upazila.
Meanwhile, the bodies of the deceased were supposed to be brought back from Khagrachari Sadar Hospital after the autopsy this afternoon (Monday), but it is known that they are still in the Khagrachari Sadar Hospital morgue as the post-mortem has not been completed.
Protest
Demonstrations and torch rallies were held in Chattogram, Dhaka, and Rajshahi yesterday to protest the attack, fatal shooting, and arson in Guimara and Khagrachari Sadar. Today (September 29), the Hill Women’s Federation, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Women’s Association, the Pahari Chhatra Parishad, and the Democratic Youth Forum jointly held a protest rally in Kaokhali, Rangamati. Furthermore, various political and student organizations, individuals, and students have issued statements demanding a fair investigation and justice for the attack.
It is worth noting that on September 23, an 8th-grade Pahari student in Singinala, Ward No. 1 of Khagrachari Municipality, was allegedly gang-raped by three Bengali youths on her way home after a private tutoring session. Following protests against the incident, the police and Army arrested a youth named Shayan Shil (19). However, the police have not been seen taking any action to arrest the other two accused. An ongoing movement is being led by a platform called the ‘Jumma Students and Public’ demanding justice for the rape and the arrest of all criminals. The Guimara attack and murder incident occurred during this anti-rape movement, a scale of event unprecedented in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
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