The siege of indigenous identity: Extremism and settler aggression in the CHT

Sanjoy Kumar Barua

The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), home to Bangladesh’s indigenous Jumma communities, is under siege from rising fanaticism and settler-driven radicalism.

State-sponsored settlement programs, religious extremism, and organized nationalist campaigns have created an environment of systemic violence, marginalization, and human rights violations, pushing the region to the brink of unrest.

The CHT was predominantly inhabited by the Jumma people, who have distinct cultural and religious identities, practicing Buddhism, Christianity, or animism.

However, a state-sponsored resettlement program in the late 1970s and 1980s brought tens of thousands of Bengali Muslims into the region, significantly altering its demographics.

Backed by the government and security forces, settlers encroached on indigenous lands, often displacing entire communities.

Today, these settlers assert their dominance through organized political groups like,Parbatya Chattogram Nagorik Parishad,Parbatya Chattogram Samo Odhikar Andolon and Students for Sovereignty, which actively oppose indigenous rights and promote Bengali nationalist agendas.

In recent years, settlers have shifted their focus from demographic dominance to promoting religious and ideological radicalization.

Radical groups, including Students for Sovereignty, have led protests aimed at erasing indigenous identity.

On September 20, 2024, the group demanded an increase in military presence in the CHT and called for the removal of “unconstitutional” provisions from the 1997 CHT Peace Accord, which granted limited autonomy to the indigenous population.

They also targeted the Upojati quota in education, a vital affirmative action policy for indigenous students.

The group’s influence has increasingly shaped government policy.

In January 2025, under their pressure, the term Adivasi was removed from national textbooks for grades 9 and 10.

This deliberate erasure of indigenous identity reflects a broader agenda to suppress recognition of the CHT’s unique cultural and ethnic diversity.

Religious extremism has further complicated the situation.

Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, is accused of infiltrating settler organizations and exploiting the CHT’s volatile situation.

Leaders Sadik Kayem and SM Farhad, with documented ties to Shibir, have been implicated in anti-indigenous campaigns, including forced conversions, ancestral jhum land grabbing the destruction of Buddhist temples, and the harassment of indigenous communities.

On Wednesday, Students for Sovereignty, the extremist group supporting the removal of an indigenous-themed artwork from the school textbooks attacked protesting indigenous students and rights activists outside the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) leaving at least 13 indigenous students and activists injured, some severely, eyewitnesses said.

Videos from the group’s social media showed armed settlers gathering near the office hours before the attack.

While the posts were deleted after the assault, no arrests have been made, leading to allegations of state complicity.

The CHT remains heavily militarized, with the Bangladeshi army justifying its presence as necessary for maintaining law and order.

However, indigenous communities accuse the military of supporting settlers in land grabs and violent attacks.

This alliance between settlers and security forces has created a culture of impunity, where perpetrators of violence against indigenous people rarely face justice.

The indigenous population of the CHT is now at a critical juncture.

Systematic land grabs, the destruction of religious and cultural sites, and the suppression of indigenous voices have left them increasingly vulnerable.

The 1997 CHT Peace Accord remains largely unimplemented, with settler groups actively opposing its provisions.

The rising tide of fanaticism in the CHT is a grave human rights crisis.

Settler-driven radicalism and religious extremism have destabilized the region, threatening its indigenous communities’ survival.

Without decisive action from the Bangladeshi government to address these issues, the CHT risks descending into further chaos, jeopardizing peace, stability, and human rights in the region.