Several Indian Border Security Force (BSF) personnel have been accused of crossing into Bangladeshi territory and assaulting a few Bangladeshis at the Naodanga border in Fulbari Upazila of Kurigram
Following the incident, locals gathered at the border in protest against the BSF. Indian citizens were also seen gathering on the other side of the border. Later, a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) patrol team arrived and dispersed the Bangladeshi locals.
The incident took place on Friday at around 2pm on the banks of the Baromasia River in the western Balatari border area of Naodanga Union, within Bangladeshi territory.
However, according to the BGB, their initial investigation has not confirmed whether the BSF entered Bangladesh or assaulted anyone. They were also unable to determine what led to the gathering of locals on both sides of the border. The BGB is currently investigating the matter.
Five residents of West Balatari village claimed to have been assaulted by the BSF. They are Shamsul Haque, 60, Jabed Ali, 55, Kashem Ali, 50, Ripon Mia, 35, and Tajul Islam, 40.
Shamsul Haque, a resident of Balatari village who was allegedly assaulted, said: “After the Friday prayers, as I left the mosque, I heard shouting from the banks of the Baromasia River. When I moved closer, five BSF personnel suddenly crossed into Bangladeshi territory and charged toward me. One of them raised his rifle to hit me, and when I grabbed it, another one struck my hand and thigh with a baton. At that time, Belal and Jabed were with me. The BSF also assaulted Jabed.”
When asked why they were assaulted, Shamsul replied: “I don’t know. After prayers, I heard shouting and went to see what was happening. I don’t know why they suddenly attacked us. However, people were gathering on the Indian side as well, and the BSF was assaulting them too. I don’t know what was happening.”
When Shamsul was being beaten, Jabed, Kashem, Ripon, and Tajul rushed to help but were also punched and kicked by the BSF members.
Manju Begum, a local woman sitting by the Baromasia River, witnessed the assault on Shamsul and Jabed. She said: “I was sitting near the river beside my house. Suddenly, I saw the BSF entering Bangladesh. At that moment, Shamsul Bhai told them, ‘Why have you come here? Go back, Dada, go back.’ As soon as he said that, they grabbed him and started beating him. We ran back home in fear.”
Angered by the BSF’s actions, locals gathered near the border and started protesting. Upon receiving the news, several BGB members, including Havildar Delwar Hossain from the Gorokhmondol Camp of BGB Battalion 15, arrived at the scene. They dispersed the gathering and brought the situation under control.
To understand why the BSF entered Bangladesh without any provocation, several border residents were interviewed. They said that five BSF members from Narayanganj Camp under India’s Sahebganj Police Station approached the area near sub-pillar 8 of border pillar 930.
They possibly entered Bangladesh by mistake. When they saw some Bangladeshis in the area, they attacked them. However, the reason behind the assault remains unclear.
Locals mentioned that they had heard in recent days that new BSF personnel had been deployed in the area. These new recruits might not yet be familiar with the border region. However, this claim has not been verified.
Meanwhile, an unconfirmed source stated that the BSF members entered Bangladeshi territory while chasing a smuggler at the border. When they encountered several Bangladeshis, they mistook them for accomplices of the smuggler and assaulted them. However, no border residents confirmed this claim.
Lieutenant Colonel Shakil Alam, Commanding Officer of BGB Battalion 15 in Lalmonirhat, said: “It has not yet been confirmed whether the BSF actually entered Bangladeshi territory. We are investigating the entire incident. A BGB patrol team arrived at the scene and dispersed the locals. The situation is now normal.”
