Two Bangladeshi cattle traders were shot dead and another suffered bullet wounds as the Indian Border Security Force opened fire in the border area of Lalmonirhat’s Kaliganj upazila early yesterday, said locals.

The BSF, however, claimed that the Bangladeshis had crossed inside their territory and that it had to fire shots in self-defence after it came under attack. 

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The deceased were Idris Ali, 30, and Bhasani Mia, 32, both from Malgara village of Kaliganj upazila. The injured, Shafiqul Islam, 28, of the same village, went missing after being shot, said Gorol Union Parishad Chairman Mahmudul Islam.

“Border Guard Bangladesh [BGB] Battalion-15 was informed about the shooting. They told us that steps would be taken to bring back the bodies and the missing person,” he told The Daily Star.

According to locals, the incident happened near border pillar-917 in Burirhat-Malgara border area of the upazila’s Gorol union as members of the Bhandaria Camp-7 of BSF opened fire on a group of eight to 10 cattle traders.

In a statement after the incident, the BSF said the Bangladeshis crossed into the Indian territory and tried to smuggle cattle about 2:30am, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

“As the BSF troop warned them to go back, they didn’t listen. Instead, they attacked them with kitchen knives and sticks causing injuries to the members of the troop. Sensing an imminent threat to their life, BSF members fired towards them. Later, two bodies were found … one BSF member also got injured in the incident,” the statement read.

Contacted, Kamal Hossain, commander of the Burirhat BGB camp, said two people were killed in a BSF firing in the border area, but it could not be immediately confirmed whether they were Bangladeshis or Indians.

“No official information has been released by the BSF yet. If the BSF provides us with official information in this regard, necessary steps will be taken on the instructions of our higher authorities,” he said.



2 Bangladeshi cattle traders shot dead by BSF
Source: Trend Viral Philippines