HC directs police, civil admin to take action against religious persecution on two Chakma families

The High Court of Tripura on Tuesday directed the police and civil administration to take strict action against two socio-judicial organizations of Chakma tribes of the state who has been running Kangaroo courts for religious persecution against two families of West Andarcherra village of Unakoti district.

The victim families moved to the High Court  and filed two writ petitions against the Director General of Police (DGP) and several other police and civil officers of the Unakoti district, including DM and SP for not taking action against the accused social bodies of the Chakma community, by which the families were isolated from the village and became jobless.

Hearing the petition, Justice Arindam Lodh issued a stay on all the decisions of the accused organizations terming their move as unconstitutional and ordered the police to take action against all accused persons.

Appearing for the state government advocate General Siddhartha Sankar Dey admitted the facts and said that the police have already initiated the proceedings against the accused persons and has also assured the court will look after the issue and ask police to take action.

Senior Advocate of the state Samrat Kar Bhowmik appearing for the petitioners apprised the court that Purnamoy Chakma, a daily wage earner and Tarun Chakma, an auto rickshaw driver of the village have left their Buddhist religion faith and embraced the Christianity in November, 2022. Allegedly, since the day of the conversion the petitioner families were continuously threatened by the members of local Panchayat and ‘Uttar Andarcherra Chakma Samajik Bichar Committee’ (SRC), a socio-judicial body of the Chakma tribe.

The families stated in the court that they were being persecuted and boycotted by the community leaders and villagers stopped giving work to Purnamoy and gradually became jobless and the family has come to the edge of starvation.

After failing to bring back the family into Buddhism, SBC chief Mohanta in an open meeting issued a written directive in May this year under the heading  “Deed for Out casting Antisocial”, which stated that without adopting Buddhism the families had adopted Christianity and Chakma society has been forced to outcast them.

The petitioners belong to the Chakma community but now the families are anti-social in the eyes of the Chakma social law and thus society has been bound to expel them forever, it stated.

A few days later, another social organization ‘Kanchancherra Chakma Samajik Adam Panchayat’ asked the victim families to show case as to why they have relinquished their own religion. They have decided the Buddhist families who have been converted to Christianity will not be supported by the local residents and relatives, father, mother, brothers and sisters or in their home or village during the time of mourning and distress for the crime of being a Christian, stated the petitioner’s counsel Kar Bhowmik.

They also prohibited Chakma families to come together with victim families and warned if anyone found intermingling with them will be punished by the Chakma social law.

But, there are no Customary law for Chamka community in Tripura and traditionally, they follow the Customary law of Mizoram, which has also given rights of all Chakma to choose their religion as per wise and if anybody prevented them, the socio-judicial body will impose a fine of Rs. 500 and government will take action as per Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Finally, Tarun Chakma lodged a written complaint in June this year to Sub-divisional police Officer (SDPO) of Kumarghat alleging he has been prohibited to drive his commercial auto-rickshaw and announced if anyone from Chakma community taken a ride on his auto would be fined Rs.30,000 that led him to starvation.

However, no action has been taken till date either by the civil administration or police, Kar Bhowmik stated in the court.