A discussion meeting was held on Tuesday at 4:00 pm to mark the 43rd death anniversary of Manabendra Narayan Larma (M N Larma), the founder of the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti (PCJSS). The 'National Committee for Observing M N Larma's Death Anniversary' organized the event. Speakers at the meeting said Larma was not just a local or regional leader; he was a national leader of Bangladesh.
They further stated that Larma risked his life to struggle for the rights and existence of the indigenous peoples of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. His life and struggle teach us that rights are never achieved easily.
The Life and Struggle of M N Larma
Manabendra Narayan Larma was born on September 15, 1939, in Mahapuram (Mawrum) in Rangamati, in the then Burighat Mouza. His ancestral home was later submerged by the waters of Kaptai Lake, created by the construction of the Kaptai Dam. From his student life, he was involved in democratic, progressive, and rights-based movements.In 1957, Larma was a key organizer of the first hill students' conference; in 1961, he organized a movement against the construction of the Kaptai Dam. At a time when Bangladesh was elated with the joy of independence and a new national identity was being written into the newly adopted constitution, he, as a young constituent assembly member, stood up and made statements that remain relevant to questions of ethnic and cultural pluralism in Bangladesh today.
Larma is remembered as one of the foremost leaders in the struggle for the rights, identity, and political recognition of the various ethnic groups of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Speakers at the memorial meeting recalled his contributions with deep respect.
