BSF kills 47 on southwestern borders in 11 months
150 injured, 80 abducted
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) killed 47 Bangladeshis on southwestern (SW) borders in eleven months since January.
Over 150 others were injured by BSF during the period on Jessore, Kushtia, Meherpur, Chuadanga, Jhenidah and Satkhira borders.
BSF also abducted at least 80 Bangladeshis during the period. At least 50 of them are in Indian jails and the rest were handed over to Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) after flag meetings.At least 70 incidents of exchange of fire between the two border guards took place on SW borders during the period.
Last year, 74 Bangladeshis were killed and around 60 abducted by BSF in the area.
The latest incident of killing took place in Satkhira on Saturday in which cattle trader Liton, 30, was shot dead on Kushkhali border in Sadar upazila.
On previous Monday, cattle trader Rafiqul Islam was shot dead on Amudia border in Satkhira Sadar upazila.
BDR said BSF men opened fire about 500 yards inside Indian territory about 4:30am when Rafiqul and some other cattle traders were returning to Bangladesh with cattle.
On Friday and Saturday last, Indian border guards gunned down five Bangladeshi cattle traders on Benapole border in Jessore.
According to sources in BDR, police and newspaper reports, seven Bangladeshis were killed in January, one in February, five in March, three in April, four in May, six in June, three each in July and August, four each in September and October and six in last 27 days of the current month.
At least 18 of the victims were cattle traders.
Of the total, 22 were killed on Satkhira and Benapole borders.
Incidents of killings and abduction continued though BSF at high profile meetings agreed not to fire on Bangladeshis without provocation. BDR and BSF signed several agreements to maintain peace on borders and resolve 'major disputes through discussion', BDR sources said.
“But BSF continued killing Bangladeshis,” a high official of BDR in southwestern region told this correspondent seeking anonymity.
This correspondent visited different border areas in the region recently and talked to local people.
They said BSF has created a panic on the border. Even farmers are afraid of going to their lands close to border.
“BSF picked up my son Habib when he was working on our field on October 26. He is now Indian jail,” farmer Abu Bakar of Terail border in Chuadanga said.
The last daylong sector commander level meeting between the two border guards was held at Mirpur in Kushtia on July 4 where the two sides discussed issues including killing of Bangladeshi nationals by BSF, smuggling of explosives, firearms and drugs from India, sheltering miscreants and other border crimes.
“We always urge them to show tolerance on issues, particularly involving innocent civilians,” Lt Col NM Noor Islam, BDR Sector Commander in Kushtia told this correspondent over phone.
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