The recently concluded 3rd All India Chakma Students’ Union (AICSU) annual conference in Guwahati was an eye opener for many socio-political observers in eastern India, as the two-day event, held at Shilpgram NEZCC auditorium, paved the way for a series of discussion and deliberations on the present status of Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in southern Bangladesh and also relentless struggles for the Pahari/Jumma people for political autonomy, land rights, and cultural rights. Moreover, pertinent questions surfaced if the CHT, adjacent to India’s States of Tripura and Mizoram as well as Myanmar’s Chin and Rakhine provinces, has emerged as a potential security threat to the entire area with an enhanced base for armed outfits hailing from south Bangladesh, Rakhine (Arakan) State and north-east India. Moreover, how long New Delhi will ignore the human rights violations faced by indigenous CHT population terming it an internal affairs of Bangladesh and also subsequent repercussions with the partial implantation of CHT peace accord, signed on 2 December 1997 by Sheikh Hasina led Bangladesh Awami League government but the Chakma and other indigenous people continue suffering from atrocious policies from Dhaka, were also highlighted.
Established in 2015, AICSU is recognized as an apex student’s body of Chakma tribal community in India with ten affiliated student outfits functioning in Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Guwahati conference on 6 and 7 March 2026 witnessed the participation of scholars, advocates, journalists and student leaders, where TIPRA Motha founder Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma, Tripura minister Santana Chakma along with Nirupam Chakma, Molin Kumar Chakma, Somlung Mossang, Pawan Tiwari, Dipankar Bhattacharjya, Swapanil Talukdar, Sona K Chakma, Sandeep Nair, Konkumoni Boro, Jinti Sharma, Prahlad Chakma, Renu Chakma, Champa Chakma, Molin Kumar Chakma, Shyamal Bikash Chakma, Naresh Chakma, Anurag Chakma, Ankita Dutta, Kuldeep Baishya, etc graced different sessions and highlighted the negative impacts arising from the non-implementation of Chittagong accord for decades in the regional security.
Needless to mention that nearly three decades after the signing of the CHT agreement, the expected outcome of durable peace remains elusive in the region. Even though the accord formally ended a two-decade long armed confrontation, the ultimate commitment for justice, meaningful autonomy and land rights for the indigenous peoples are yet to be fulfilled. Heavy militarisation, unresolved land disputes, weakened civilian institutions and persistent human rights violations in the CHT continue to draw international media attention. As the locality shares a sensitive international boundary with India and Myanmar, its insinuation always has a bigger perspective. Commenting on the burning issue, AICSU president Drishya Muni Chakma, stated that when India’s national security doctrine prioritises stable neighbourhoods largely avoiding the transnational threats, including trafficking, illegal migration, extremist networks, and external strategic penetration, New Delhi should not ignore the recurring violence in the CHT. A volatile CHT may be exploited by non-state actors or external geopolitical competitors seeking influence in the Bay of Bengal region. The prolonged ignorance in implementing the important peace accord may encourage a structural fragility to transform into a latent regional security risk with tangible implications for the entire zone.
The CHT, once a 95% non-Muslim locality during the partition of India, was later flooded with the landless plan settlers, mostly Bengali Muslims. The Chittagong tribal leaders approached Dhaka many times demanding more autonomy, but in vain. Soon the Pahari people started agitating against the incursion and later the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti-led movement turned violent. The CHT armed struggle resulted in the killing of over 30,000 people and displacement of a large volume of locals. Shanti Bahini, the armed wing of Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti, also lost nearly 2,000 rebels while fighting against the Bangladesh security forces. Even though the accord granted some kind of autonomy and cultural rights, the local Buddhists, Hindus and other ethno-religious groups continue demanding its full implementation. The political instability may compel thousands of families belonging to Chakma and other communities from Chittagong to seek refuge in north-eastern States following the cross-border ethnic linkages. Moreover, taking advantage of the situation, militants belonging to Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, Rohingya Solidarity Organisation, and some separatist anti-New Delhi insurgents may regroup with the Chittagong-based armed cadres, which would complicate the security scenario in the eastern Indian localities too.
Probably, it’s high time for New Delhi to take a serious note over the CHT scenario and initiate pragmatic actions.
