The 46th martyrdom anniversary of the immortal Hurua martyrs was observed on February 25 by comrades and democratic people in Tripura and Dibrugarh with deep revolutionary commitment and remembrance.
On February 25, 1980, seven revolutionary activists of CPI(ML) Liberation – Comrades Gobinda Teli, Khitipati Das, Akkel Miah, Ranjan Nath, Chandu Namo, Chandrakanta Nath and Kalinjay Singh – were killed by Tripura police in a fake encounter in Hurua village near Dharmanagar. The Justice A K De Commission later found the police guilty of committing cold-blooded murders. The Hurua massacre remains one of the darkest stains on the then Left Front government headed by Nripen Chakraborty.
Comrade Gobinda Teli had been leading militant struggles of landless peasants and sharecroppers against landlords and moneylenders across vast areas of the Dharmanagar subdivision. Under his leadership, poor peasants and agricultural labourers began organising themselves to challenge exploitation and assert their rights over land and livelihood. Comrade Khitipati Das of Dibrugarh had left his job in a bank to become a full-time party worker in Tripura and played an important role in strengthening the revolutionary movement in the region.
The Hurua massacre did not silence the movement. Instead, it inspired more comrades in Dharmanagar and other parts of Tripura to continue and expand the struggle of the oppressed. In Dibrugarh’s Shantipara area, comrades later formed a sociocultural organisation named Disharee to preserve the memory and ideals of Comrade Khitipati Das and the Hurua martyrs.
Like every year since 1980, comrades and supporters gathered on February 25 this year to commemorate the martyrs. Portraits and statues of the Hurua martyrs were garlanded and tributes were paid to their sacrifices. Meetings were held recalling their revolutionary lives and reaffirming the commitment to carry forward their unfinished struggle.
On this occasion, Disharee organised a medical camp in Dibrugarh to provide free medical assistance to poor and needy people, dedicating the initiative to the memory of the Hurua martyrs.
Comrades across the region reiterated their resolve to uphold the legacy of the martyrs and strengthen the struggle for justice, dignity and liberation of the oppressed.
