The Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG) has called for intervention from international election observers, including those from the European Union, Commonwealth, and Japan, regarding alleged threats to indigenous Buddhist parliamentary candidates during the 13th Parliamentary elections in Bangladesh. The candidates, Mr. Pahel Chakma from Rangamati and Mr. Dharma Jyoti Chakma from Khagrachari, reportedly received death threats from the armed group Parbatto Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (PCJSS), led by Mr. Jyotirindra Bodhipriyo Larma (Santu Larma), who also chairs the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council.
RRAG reported that approximately 75-armed PCJSS members have been deployed by the Bangladesh Army in Khagrachari to intimidate indigenous voters and coerce them into supporting national parties such as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jamaat-e-Islami, and the National Citizens Party. Allegations include that Mr. Pahel Chakma filed a General Diary entry with the police, which authorities declined to convert into a First Information Report, and a forged withdrawal letter was submitted in the name of Mr. Dharma Jyoti Chakma without subsequent action taken.
Despite the PCJSS reportedly disarming after the 1997 CHT Accord, RRAG stated the group retains an armed wing under the auspices of state support due to Santu Larma’s official rank. Previous incidents, including the arrest of PCJSS members and judicial references categorizing the group as a terrorist organization, were cited to illustrate the ongoing threats independent indigenous candidates face.
The RRAG argues that while the PCJSS is not contesting the elections, it actively undermines the electoral process to favor major parties, indicating a collusion between national political actors and elements of the security forces that jeopardizes the integrity of elections for indigenous peoples. The group has urged observers to ensure that election monitors are deployed in vulnerable districts, protect threatened candidates, and restrict armed PCJSS members to government facilities, in line with human rights protocols.