Bangladesh army firing on West Bengal border: Jawan Shahid, one injured

Tensions between the two armies stem from a provocative attack by a BGB soldier

(PTI) Kolkata / New Delhi, October 17, 2019, Thursday

A Border Security Force (BSF) jawan was killed and another Jawan was injured after a Bangladeshi army guard fired from his AK-47 during an 'flag meeting' on the international border between India and Bangladesh in West Bengal, officials said.

The provocative attack by a soldier of the Border Guard (BGB) in Bangladesh created a tense atmosphere between the two countries, and the BSF chief V. That Johri had a conversation on the hotline with Major General Shafinul Islam, his counterpart in Bangladesh.

The BGB director general confirmed the detailed investigation into the incident, he said. The incident happened when a BGB soldier was standing in the middle of the Padma river at 9am on BSF post at Kakmarich border in Murshidabad district to resolve a dispute involving Indian fishermen, officials said.

Sources said that the BGB soldier detained three Indian fishermen along the international border. The fishermen were given three kilometers to the BSF. Fishing was allowed within the international border in the middle of the wide Padma River. Hilsa fishes are found in this river.

A BGB team dropped two of the three fishermen and called the BSF personnel for a flag meeting. The missing fishermen told the BSF that they had caught a fisherman. The commander of the 117th Battalion, along with six soldiers, met with Bangladeshi soldiers to resolve the dispute.

Bangladeshi soldiers did not release the captive Indian fisherman. However, six BSF jawans were returning after seeing their 'aggression', when Jawan Syed of the Bangladesh Border Guard opened fire on them, killing BSF head constable Vijay Bhan Singh in the head while Constable Rajvir Yadav sustained injuries.

The relations between Bangladesh and India are very cordial and not a single shot has been fired between the two countries for decades. The incident is exceptional and efforts are being made to ensure that the situation does not worsen, official sources said.

BSF was shocked to report the incident to the top security departments at the Union Home Ministry and the Foreign Ministry in New Delhi.