Garo Family’s House Razed in Madhupur; Reconstruction Assured by UNO.
On 9 March 2026, Monday a video went viral on social media Facebook showing several members of the Ansar force pointing gun at an Indigenous Garo woman, pulling her scarf, and harassing her.
Following the incident, it is known that, in Madhupur of Tangail district, authorities of a rubber plantation company under the Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation (BFIDC) have been accused of demolishing the house of a Garo family and evicting them in the name of a land recovery operation. It is also alleged that trees around the family’s house were cut down during the incident.
The incident took place on Monday afternoon in the Kalapahar area of Dharati village in Madhupur Upazila. Following the incident, tension spread across the area, raising concerns about a renewed conflict between the Garo community and the Forest Department in the Madhupur forest region.
According to Forest Department sources, in 1986 about 7,000 acres of the Madhupur Sal forest were taken over and a rubber plantation was established there. The plantation, known as Chandpur Rubber Estate, has still not become profitable. Currently, banana and pineapple cultivation is taking place throughout the plantation area.
Meanwhile, the Garo family living in Kalapahar of East Dharati in Madhupur Garh has been residing there for a long time. They claim that they purchased the land from the Forest Department and built their house there. Local sources said that on Monday afternoon, an eviction drive was carried out at the house under the leadership of Aman Ullah Aman, the manager of Chandpur Rubber Estate.
When asked about the operation, Aman Ullah Aman told “Regular operations are conducted to recover land occupied by the Forest Department. This operation was part of that effort.” However, the affected couple, Romen Kubi and Shibli Mangsang, alleged that no written notice had been given by the Forest Department asking them to remove their house.
After receiving the news, Madhupur Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mirza Zubair Hossain visited the site and held a meeting with the rubber plantation authorities. He later told media that, during the operation, Ansar members acted excessively. The Rubber plantation authorities have apologized to the affected family. They have promised to provide two bundles of tin sheets, 6,000 taka, and cover other necessary expenses for rehabilitation or rebuilding the house. The UNO told that, the concerned department has been instructed not to carry out such operations in the future without informing the UNO and the Officer-in-Charge (OC). He also assured that, without rehabilitation measures no eviction can be taken place.
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