Indian Border Security Force indulged in 244 incidents of firing along the border with Bangladesh in 2021, according to data of the Indian home ministry.
According to the data, there were 219 incidents of lethal weapon firing involving the BSF on the Bangladesh border in 2015. The figure remained below 200 in only two years: 2017 (139) and 2018 (77). The year 2016 saw maximum lethal weapon firing incidents at 355, reports the Indian Express.
Similarly, the firing of pump-action or pellet guns, which the BSF uses to deter cross-border criminals, has also remained consistent during the period, the newspaper said.
The data also showed that smuggling of cattle to Bangladesh significantly dropped as the Indian border force could seize 20,415 cattle till November 2021 from the border which was 1,53,602 in 2015.
Data from the last seven years shows that 2018 was a turning point when cattle seizures dropped almost by 50 per cent to 63,716 compared with 1,19,299 in 2017. The numbers dropped sharply over the last two years – 46,809 in 2019, and 20,415 in 2021.
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at a meeting with Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla in Dhaka on December 7 last year said that the killing of Bangladesh nationals by the Indian border security forces continued to remain an irritant despite the goodwill and excellent relations between the two countries.
Momen also on November 14 last year iterated that the border killing is a matter of shame for India and unfortunate for Bangladesh as Bangladeshis are losing their lives.
“I always say, it’s unfortunate for us and it’s a matter of shame for India… I’ve no other answer to that,” he said while responding to a question at a media briefing at his ministry.
Momen said the decision was taken at the level of heads of government and also at various levels that the two countries do not want to see any killing along the Bangladesh-India border and there was a verbal decision that no lethal weapon will be used.
“But it happens from time to time.”
