Tea garden staff 'assault' journo, videographer in Sylhet

A reporter and a videographer of Jamuna TV were allegedly manhandled by the authorities of Tarapur Tea Garden outside Sylhet city when the two went there to cover the agitation of labourers over felling of around a hundred tea plants yesterday.

The garden employees pushed Prattush Talukder, the reporter, and Nirananda Pal, the videographer, to the ground while garden manager Ataur Rahman tried to snatch away the camera, said Mahbubur Rahman Ripon, Jamuna's Sylhet bureau chief.

Ataur denied the allegation of manhandling, and said the tea plants were chopped down to make a place for construction of a garbage dump station by the city corporation.

Tea workers, however, alleged that the garden was gradually shrinking for illegal occupation, and someday there would be no garden at all if this continued.

"We protest the illegal handover of the garden's land to anybody," said Ripon Modi, a worker. The garden authority cannot fell tea plants for any purpose, he added.

Tea gardens are government land leased out to individuals or organisations for a certain period.

Ataur told The Daily Star, "When the garden owner gives a plot to anybody, we the staff have nothing to do." However, due to the labourers' protest, "we took the land back".

Sylhet city's Ward 8 Councillor Iliasur Rahman said the garden authorities had decided to give the plot for building a dump station.

On information, police went to the garden and took the situation under control, said Additional Deputy Commissioner of Sylhet Metropolitan Police Md Rahamat Ullah. He said the two newsmen were manhandled by garden staff.