What was my son's fault? asks father of Rangamati beating victim Anik Chakma

“We never had dreams. Anik was the only dreamer in the family. Now all of our dreams are gone, and our hope is lost,” said Anik’s father

Anik Chakma’s family lives in the remote hilly areas of Rangamati. It was some time after his death that they learned he was dead. Anik’s father is distraught. It was only two weeks before his death that his son moved into the rented place where he was living.

The family says Anik had ‘outlined happy dreams’ for his parents and was admitted to the Karnaphuli College in Kaptai Upazila as a first-year student. His family did not know that he had accompanied his friends to a procession protesting attacks on ethnic minorities in the Chattogram Hill Tracts.

When that procession was attacked, Anik was separated from his friends. Around 10-12 attackers beat him mercilessly at Rangamati’s Kalindipur for a few seconds. They fled the scene after ensuring Anik was dead. And so all his dreams of making his parents happy came to an end.

His parents, Adar Sen Chakma and Tara Shundari Chakma, live in Neyadam village in the Sadar Upazila. They got the news of their son’s death quite late.

Tara Shundari keeps falling unconscious from shock since she learned her son was gone, relatives say. Every time she regains consciousness, she laments that her son is gone.

A week has passed, but she has yet to recover. She hardly eats. The only thing she can do is shed tears for her son.

Anik’s father Adar Sen earns a living by cutting bamboo and other trees. Anik always felt his father’s plight deeply. He wanted to make his family happy. He used to say that, one day, his father would not need to do such strenuous work.

“We are poor people. We work hard, cutting bamboo and trees to provide for the family. We never had dreams. Anik was the only dreamer in the family. He always dreamed of making me and his mother happy. We hoped that he would do so when grown up. Now all of our dreams are gone, and all hope is lost,” said Adar Sen Chakma.

“His mother has stopped eating and cannot stop crying for him. She can’t even speak. She faints frequently and we have to pour water on her head to bring her back to consciousness.”

Anik was born on Feb 1, 2006, in Neyadam village. He completed his SSC and was admitted to Karnaphuli College. He left his home for Kaptai only 16 days ago.

Around the same time as Anik, a young man called Mamun was beaten to death in Khagrachhari. His body was recovered on Sept 19. A procession was brought out from Dighinala College to protest the death of Mamun. The violence sparked around the protest and the Larma Square market was set on fire, burning down more than a hundred shops.

After that, violence spread across Khagrachhari, where three people were shot dead.

The next day, the violence spread to Rangamati. On Sept 20, a group under the banner ‘Shonghat O Boishammo Birodhi Pahari Chhatra Andolon’ brought out a procession in Rangamati. A clash broke out between the Bengalis and the ethnic minority groups of the hill areas when the procession reached Bonorupa from the Gymnasium Square. As many as 78 people were injured in the attacks and clashes.

Anik was beaten to death amid the violence.

Anik was cremated on Sept 22. Other funeral rites were performed on Sunday at the monastery in his village, his relatives said.

Mogban Union Council member Kiranmoy Chakma accompanied Anik’s father when he came to collect Anik’s body from the morgue at Rangamati Sadar Hospital.

“After Anik’s death, I came to the hospital with his father on Saturday. I was very scared as the hill people were still being attacked. The boy wanted to take care of his parents. He won’t be able to do so now,” he said.

“He only left home 16 days ago. We had no idea that he joined the procession. I heard much later that the Bengalis had killed him. What was my son’s fault?” asked Anik’s father.

Before Anik was admitted to college, he always worried about his father. He always said his father worked hard to raise him and that one day, when he grew up, he would bring an end to his father’s hardships.

”Our family will be happy one day and I will overcome our poverty,” Adar Sen said, quoting his son. “It will never happen now,” he said.

A video of Anik’s killing went viral on social media. It showed 10 to 12 people beating and hacking Anik, pinning him to the ground. Less than a minute into the attack, his body goes limp.

Anik’s father filed a case with the Kotwali Police Station, but no arrests have yet been made.

“Anik, dear brother, do not be reborn in this country. Not in this country where you had to die after being beaten like a stray dog,” an account named Liza Chakma wrote on Facebook after his death.

Graphic designer Deepen Chakma from Rangamati wrote, “Martyr Anik Chakma, who died a miserable death in a communal attack.”

The entirety of the Chattogram Hill Tracts, including Rangamati, has been gripped with sorrow over Anik’s death. Different quarters have demanded exemplary punishment for his killers.