Chittagong, Dec 02: At least four people were injured today in a gun attack in Bangladesh's southeastern hills on the office of a party that opposes a controversial peace pact, local officials said. The attack came as roads to the Chittagong hill tracts were blocked by tribal protesters demanding a withdrawal of troops as promised in the accord signed six years ago this week.
The office of the United People's Democratic Front (UPDF), which opposes the 1997 treaty as it did not grant autonomy, was shot at in the Khagrachari district's Babucchara area, leaving four party members injured, officials said.
"The army rushed to the area and took the injured to a hospital," a local official said, adding that troops were patrolling the area.
It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack.
But the UPDF has clashed in the past with the Parbattya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samity, the political wing of the former Shanti Bahini rebels which signed the peace treaty.
The Samity is leading protests this week to demand full implementation of the peace treaty, including a withdrawal of troops and a resolution to disputes over land claimed by tribal people.
Bureau Report