Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has issued a stern warning that no more “sanctuary” of isolated terrorists or criminal gangs will be allowed in Chittagong’s jungle Salimpur.
He made this comment at a press briefing organized after the on-site inspection of the jungle Salimpur area on Saturday (May 31).
During the visit, Minister of State for Land and Chittagong Hill Tracts Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin, Chittagong City Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hossain, Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Manjur Morshed Chowdhury, IGP Md. Ali Hossain Fakir, Director General of BGB along with senior officials of administration and law enforcement were present.
The Home Minister said, “Through the politics of demonization in the past, there was an attempt to build a kind of rogue structure within the state, an example of which is Jungle Salimpur. However, the present government has taken a strict stand against these criminal activities since assuming office.”
He further said, “The dominance that the terrorists tried to establish by installing CCTV cameras and parallel control systems in the area has been broken through joint operations.” However, due to some reasons including information leakage, the aim of the operation could not be fully achieved, he said.
Describing the incident of vandalism of RAB’s under-construction camp as a “challenge against the state”, the Home Minister said that work is underway to identify the land robbers and fuelers behind it.
Assuring the local residents, he said, “None of those who are living here for various reasons will be evicted for now. A sustainable resettlement plan will be taken for genuine residents.”
He also said that besides building a modern road network in Jungle Salimpur, infrastructure development plans have been taken for police, BGB and other forces. Apart from this, the administrative process is also progressing regarding the transfer of Chittagong Central Jail.
The Home Minister said, “We want to move forward with the people in establishing the rule of law in the country.”
