Guests attend a news conference organised by Bangladesh Adivasi Forum at Dhaka Reporters Unity in the capital on Monday. — New Age photo
Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum general secretary Sanjeeb Drong on Monday urged the government to save 360 acres of border land of Bangladesh at Pallathol Khasia Punji, Baralekha, Moulvibazaar from going into Indian possession.
Speaking at a news conference at Dhaka Reporters Unity he said that India began a survey to take possession of the 360 acres of land historically owned by 50 Bangladeshi Khasia families.
He demanded immediate steps to halt the survey by India.
Sanjeeb Drong demanded immediate spot visit at Pallathol Punji by a high level committee comprising representatives of the government and the civil society.
He demanded a state level dialogue to look into how land belonging to Bangladesh would go under Indian possession.
He demanded taking the opinion of the indigenous organizations and the civil society on the issue.
He asked the government to entrust the National Human Rights Commission to give a report on the issue.
Sanjeeb Drong said if India took possession of the land, the Khasi families would lose their homesteads, graveyards, primary school, play grounds and all the betel leaf plantations which is the lone source of their livelihood.
He said that instead of providing 74.54 acres of land in Assam to Bangladesh under a protocol signed in September 2011, India was trying to take the possession of 360 acres of Bangladesh land in Moulvibazaar. He said this land was never part of India or Assam.
He said that during Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Dhaka, the protocol was signed in 2011 under the 1974 Bangladesh-India Land Boundary Agreement.
Source: New Age
