A Bangladeshi man was shot and killed by members of the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) near the Bashalgaon border in Thakurgaon’s Haripur upazila yesterday.
The victim was 32-year-old cattle trader Hemanto Kumar, son of Jitesh Chandra Barman, a resident of Kholra village of the upazila, according to the UNB news agency.
Quoting locals, BGB sources said Hemanto was killed when a BGB team shot at a group of Bangladeshi cattle traders as they were trying to smuggle cattle from India.
Confirming the incident, Dinajpur 42 Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Commander Lt Col Akhtar Ekbal said it was a patrol team from BSF’s Barogaon camp that gunned down cattle smuggler Hemanto.
The Indian forces opened fire at Hemanto before dawn, as he was trying to cut the barbed wire of the border to enter the country, he added.
Hemanto died instantly from his gunshot wound, while the BSF members took his body to their camp.
Talking to the Dhaka Tribune over phone, Commander Akhtar Ekbal said he was on his way to the Bashalgaon border for a flag meeting on the issue with the BSF. The BGB official said he would also visit the site where the victim had been shot.
Lt Col Ekbal expressed hopes that the young man’s body would be returned on Wednesday after proper legal formalities are carried out.