Hartal called off in Rangamati as land commission meet postponed
The strike was supposed to remain in force until 2pm on Wednesday
The 32-hour hartal in Rangamati was called off on Tuesday afternoon following postponement of Wednesday's meeting of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Land Dispute Settlement Commission.
Parbatya Chattogram Nagorik Parishad on Monday called the strike demanding a cancellation of amendment of the land commission act and the scheduled meeting of the CHT Land Dispute Settlement Commission.
Kazi Mujibur Rahman, chairman of the executive council of Parbatya Chattogram Nagorik Parishad, made the announcement at a press conference at around 3pm.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
"The hartal has been suspended from 3pm keeping in mind the sufferings of the common people in the district," he said.
However, he requested the Chittagong Hill Tracts Land Dispute Settlement Commission to work in an "impartial and acceptable" manner and urged the commission to accept their seven-point demand.
"The meeting of Chittagong Hill Tracts Land Dispute Settlement Commission which was scheduled to be held in Rangamati on 7 September has been postponed due to the hartal called by the Nagorik Parishad," says a letter signed by Secretary of Land Commission (Joint District Judge) Mohammad Nezamuddin on Tuesday.
The next date of the meeting will be set later, the letter adds.
"If the commission "secretly" meets somewhere, it will be "resisted" through protest programmes," Kazi Mujibur added.
In support of the hartal, Nagorik Parishad leaders and activists were seen picketing at various points of Rangamati town since Tuesday morning.
The organisation called a 32-hour hartal in the district town from 6:00am on Tuesday till 2:00pm on Wednesday to press home their seven-point demand, including the demands outlined below.
Their demands include: representation of all ethnic groups in the land commission; conducting a land survey before the work of land dispute resolution; cancellation of amendment of the land commission act, settlement of land disputes in CHT according to the existing laws of the country, and rehabilitating individuals if affected by land dispute settlement by the commission.
