Thirty-nine Bangladeshi citizens who had been jailed in India for illegally crossing the border were repatriated on Tuesday through a flag meeting between Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) in Meherpur.
The handover took place at Satkabar in Kaziapur, near border pillar 147/MP, between 1:30pm and 2pm. Among the returnees were 28 men, nine women and two children, said Lt Col Md Mahbub Murshed Rahman, commanding officer of Kushtia 47 BGB Battalion
The Gandina Company commander of BSF’s 11th Battalion formally proposed the repatriation through an official letter, which included a detailed list of the returnees, said the BGB official.
BGB authorities verified the citizenship of all 39 individuals by contacting their families in Bangladesh before the handover. Indian authorities had earlier detained them at different times for illegal border crossing, and they completed their respective prison terms before release.
The flag meeting was attended on the Bangladeshi side by Gangni Assistant Commissioner (land) Md Saddam Hossain, Officer-in-Charge of Gangni police station Md Bani Israel, acting Company Commander of Meherpur Kaziapur Company Naik Subedar Md Asabur Rahman and seven other personnel. From the Indian side, Gandina Camp Company Commander AC Sunil led an 18-member team.
The 39 Bangladeshi citizens returned were being placed under Gangni police station's custody in Meherpur for further procedure as per regulations.
