The Border Security Force on Saturday filed a first information report against the Border Guards Bangladesh, two days after an Indian jawan was killed, PTI reported. “Yes, we have received a complaint from the BSF,” Murshidabad Superintendent of Police Mukesh Kumar said. “A case has been registered and investigation is on.”
In a statement released late on Thursday, the Border Guards Bangladesh said their patrolling team had attempted to detain three Indian fishermen who had come inside Bangladeshi waters in an engine-run boat, but two of them managed to escape. Following this, four armed BSF soldiers, including one in uniform, came inside 650 yards of Bangladesh’s territory with a speedboat to bring back the detained fishermen.
Bangladesh also claimed that the border guards fired in self-defence on the soldiers, who were searching for the third fisherman still in the custody of Border Guards Bangladesh.
However, a senior BSF official said on Saturday that “not a single bullet” had been fired from the Indian side. “Although an inquiry has been ordered by the BSF, we still decided to lodge a complaint with the police, in accordance with the norms,” he said. “The allegation by the BGB that we had fired first is not just absurd but a blatant lie. We didn’t fire a single bullet.”
According to the Indian version, Border Guards Bangladesh released two of the fishermen, and informed the BSF that they were holding the third fisherman. Subsequently, a six-member Indian BSF party left on a motorboat to resolve the matter. Shortly thereafter, a Border Guards Bangladesh soldier identified only as Sayed fired, killing BSF constable Vijay Bhan Singh and injuring two others.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said on Friday that the two sides were trying to peacefully resolve the dispute, the Dhaka Tribune reported. “This was an unfortunate event, which should not affect the cordial relationship between Bangladesh and India,” he said at the Dhaka Press Club. “We are set to identify the conflicting issues between the two forces, and design peaceful solution to restore the friendly bonding between them.”
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