An indefinite blockade called by two local organizations entered its fourth consecutive day on Sunday (October 26) in the popular tourist hub of Sajek under Baghaichhari upazila of Rangamati, leaving the picturesque Ruilui tourist center completely devoid of visitors and enveloped in a tense calm. The transport strike, enforced jointly by the Sajek Gonodhikar Rokkha Committee and the Sajek Karbari Association to press home their demands, has brought vehicular movement on the Sajek road to a total standstill since the morning hours.
Outside the scenic resort zones, picketing along various thoroughfares has maintained an atmosphere of palpable tension across different areas of Sajek. Motijoy Tripura, joint general secretary of the Sajek Resort-Cottage Owners Association, reported that not a single tourist is currently staying in the region, leaving hotel and resort employees with little to do and restaurants entirely devoid of customers. Meanwhile, Bijoy Kanti Chakma, member secretary of the Sajek Gonodhikar Rokkha Committee, stated that picketing was actively underway at the 10th mile, 14th kilo, and Hajachhara areas, warning that their agitation would continue until their demands are met.
In response to the escalating crisis, the district administration convened an exchange meeting with local headmen and karbaris on Sunday morning at 10:30 AM inside the conference room of the Deputy Commissioner's office. Rangamati Deputy Commissioner Nazma Ashrafy presided over the session, which featured Wadud Bhuiyan, Member of Parliament for the Khagrachhari constituency and president of the parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, as the chief guest, alongside Dipen Dewan, Member of Parliament for Rangamati, as the special guest. During the meeting, authorities formed a three-member special committee comprising Kalyanmitra Chakma, advisor to the Longudu Karbari Headman Association, Bhabotosh Dewan, vice-president of the CHT Headman Network, and Shanti Bijoy Chakma, general secretary of the network, to negotiate a resolution.
Addressing journalists after the meeting, lawmaker Wadud Bhuiyan emphasized that the newly formed committee, in coordination with the respective upazila nirbahi officer (UNO), police station officer-in-charge, and local administration, will facilitate comprehensive dialogues with all concerned parties, including those claiming karbari status. While asserting that certain vested groups are attempting to foment instability in the area, Bhuiyan explicitly refrained from blaming local residents. Concurrently, Sajek Police Station Officer-in-Charge Tofazzal Hossain confirmed that no major untiring incidents have been reported thus far, noting that law enforcement personnel remain on high alert with intensified patrols to maintain public security.
The ongoing indefinite shutdown stems from a series of escalating protests that began when the organizing bodies enforced a single-day blockade on October 11, followed by a second phase called on October 15, which was temporarily suspended between October 16 and October 21 for the Sharadiya Durga Puja festival. Following the resumption of the blockade with an indefinite strike announcement on Thursday, the Rangamati district administration suspended tourism in the region due to security concerns, prompting visitors to evacuate by Thursday morning amid reports of gunfire near the Ujo Bazar area—an incident attributed to armed members of the UPDF by security forces, though the organization has denied the allegation. The unrest further widened on Saturday (October 25) when an organization styled as the Student-Public Struggle Council enforced a half-day blockade across Rangamati and Khagrachhari in protest against reported assaults, baton charges, and vandalism of homes and shops during the Sajek blockade.
