A gunfight is underway between law enforcement personnel and an armed group in the Ujo Bazar area of Sajek, in Baghaichhari upazila of Rangamati, police said on Tuesday.
According to the law enforcement personnel, the exchange of fire began at around 11:30 am. The gunfight was still ongoing as of 12:30 pm, when this report was filed.
Rangamati Superintendent of Police Muhammad Abdur Rakib confirmed the information to Prothom Alo.
He said law enforcement personnel were still engaged in a gunfight with an armed group at around 12:30 pm.
The Rangamati SP added that further details would be provided after more information had been gathered.
Earlier, around 2,000 tourists were stranded while returning from Sajek Valley. They were travelling from Sajek to Khagrachhari at around 9:00 am on Thursday under the escort of army and police personnel.
However, a blockade called by two regional organisations left them stranded in the Ujo Bazar area at around 9:30 am.
As the protesters were occupying the Ujo Bazar area, the tourists were unable to move on. Law enforcement personnel later used batons to disperse the protesters.
The convoy of tourist vehicles then left the area at around 11:00 am. Shortly after that around 11:30 am a gunfight between law enforcement personnel and an armed group began, said the police.
On Wednesday, two organisations, the Sajek Gano Odhikar Rokkha Committee and Sajek Karbari Association, announced a third round of blockades on the Sajek tourist road.
In a statement, the organisations said the blockade would continue indefinitely from Thursday. They urged all tourists to leave Sajek by Wednesday.
Following the blockade called by the two regional organisations, the district administration announced the temporary closure of Sajek for security reasons.
In a public notice issued on Wednesday evening, Rangamati Deputy Commissioner Nazma Ashrafi said Sajek Valley in Baghaichhari upazila would remain temporarily closed until further notice.
The notice instructed everyone to leave Sajek safely by 4:00 pm on Thursday.
Tourists began leaving Sajek on Thursday morning in compliance with the district administration’s directive. However, just half an hour after leaving Sajek, they encountered the protesters in Ujo Bazar, Baghaichhari.
Mohammad Yasin, a lineman for tourist vehicles in Sajek, told Prothom Alo that tourist vehicles usually leave Sajek for Khagrachhari at 10:30 am. However, due to the blockade, they left at 9:00 am on Thursday.
Around 2,000 tourists left Sajek under the escort of army and police personnel.
Earlier, on 15 October, the leaders and activists of the Sajek Gano Odhikar Rokkha Committee and Sajek Karbari Association began a second round of indefinite blockades on the Sajek tourist road from 6:00 am.
They staged protests by setting fire to tyres and tree trunks at various points along the road.
One of the three demands made by the protesters is the removal of armed members of the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS- Santu Larma) from the Sajek area.
They had called an indefinite blockade on 11 October over the same demand.
The JSS has denied the allegations. Sajeeb Chakma, the organisation’s publicity secretary, told Prothom Alo that the allegations were being made to divert attention from the long-standing oppression and harassment of general public in Sajek by armed members of the United People’s Democratic Front (UPDF).
Local tourism businesses have suffered losses following the blockade and the announcement of Sajek’s closure.
Motijoy Tripura, joint general secretary of the Sajek Resort Cottage Owners’ Association, told Prothom Alo that tourists were being forced to leave Sajek because of the blockade, and many had cancelled their advance resort bookings.
He added that road blockades in Sajek cause severe hardship not only for tourists and business owners but also for local residents. People are unable to buy food supplies or take their agricultural produce to market.