A dispute over the sale of agar trees created chaos Kadamtala village under the North Tripura District, leading to police intervention followed by investigation.
According to local sources, Abdul Haq, a resident of Juliabasa area of Ward No. 5 of Barogol Gram Panchayat, sold ten agar trees a few years ago to his neighbor Altab Hossain at a fixed price. However, a dispute arose between the two parties over the sold agar trees.
Buyer Altab Hossain claimed that he had purchased 93 agar trees, leading to a case and counter-case being filed at Kadamtala Police Station. Despite multiple attempts to resolve the issue through village arbitration meetings, no solution was reached.
Finally, with the help of Kadamtala police, a compromise meeting was held at the police station involving prominent personalities of Juliabasa area. In the meeting, it was decided that the buyer Altab would be given 12 agar trees. Initially, the buyer agreed but later changed his mind.
On Sunday ( May 12, 2024) morning, the buyer Altab, along with his men, allegedly entered the house of Abdul Haq, trapped the occupants inside, and started cutting down agar trees from the garden of the latter.
The victim Abdul’s wife, Fatima Begum, said that they somehow managed to escape from the locked room through the back door and informed Kadamtala police. By the time the police arrived, the attackers had taken away some of the cut agar trees. The police later seized the remaining agar trees.
Abdul Haq filed an FIR at Kadamtala Police Station, Dharmanagar Sub-Divisional Police and District Police Superintendent against Altab Hossain, Abdul Mumin, Rafiq Uddin, and Selim Uddin, alleging that a total of 55 agar trees were cut down from their house, worth Rs 20 lakh. He has also informed the Kadamtala Forest Department.
Amidst allegations and counter allegations, locals demanded that the police investigate the entire incident and dispose of it. They said if the felled agar trees are the buyer Altab Hossain’s rightful due, then they should be given to him. Otherwise, the police should hand them over to the owner of the trees.
When contacted, local residents Liaqat Ali and Amir Uddin, on behalf of agar tree buyer Altab Hossain, said that the complainant Abdul Haq’s family had sold agar trees to them in several installments in their presence. They alleged that after selling the trees at a decided price, the Haq family is now resorting to lies.
Sub-Inspector Sanjib Sarkar, Investigating Officer of the case at Kadamtala Police Station, said that a case was registered and Police started investigating the entire incident.
(Tripura, Tripura Tripura)
