"Reports Exaggerated": Bangladesh Border Force Downplays Attacks On Minorities

The Chief of Bangladesh's border guarding force on Thursday appeared to downplay the attacks on minorities in his country that took place after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, saying such reports were "exaggerated".

"Such attacks did not happen. In fact, the Hindus in Bangladesh celebrated Durga puja. The law enforcing agencies have been tasked to ensure the safety of minorities. The clashes were related to politics," said Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) director general Maj Gen Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui.

A recent report of the UN Human Rights Office had said that "widespread attacks were reported against Hindu homes, businesses, and places of worship, especially in rural and historically tense areas such as Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat, and Dinajpur, as well as other places such as Sylhet, Khulna, and Rangpur" following the fall of the Hasina government last year.

The report said this destruction was especially prevalent in areas perceived to be sympathetic to the Awami League as Hindus have often been stereotypically associated with this political faction.

BGB DG also said "many new issues" under the common heads were discussed during his high-level talks with an Indian delegation headed by BSF DG Daljit Singh Chawdhary in New Delhi.

This was the first high-level meeting of the two forces after the regime change in Bangladesh in August last year.

BSF Director General Daljit Singh Chawdhary said the objection to border fencing by BGB was discussed. "The India-Bangladesh border is dynamic. Different kinds of issues keep arising. However, our local officers always try to solve them,"  BSF Director General said.

Bangladesh has been persistently opposing the construction of a single-row fence within 150 km of the border pillar at Sabdalpur village in the Malda district of West Bengal.

BGB DG said such construction should be "justified". "There should be negotiation before constructing anything within 150 yards from the international border. And such construction should have been properly justified. Here, mutual consultation is very much necessary to construct anything within 150 yards from the zero line," he said.

"Constructions can take place if there is no objection from the other side," the BGB chief said.

However, both sides have agreed to conduct survey and only after that construction work within 150 yards of International Border would be done.

"We have requested for joint inspection wherever there are issues," he said.

Both sides agreed to ensure stability of their borders, with both sides agreeing to follow non-lethal policy.

"We took up the point of attack on Indian nationals and BSF personnel on the International Border by BGB. At times, taking advantage of the night cover, some miscreants try to breach the fence and enter our territory. Though we very strictly adhere to protocol of not using unnecessary lethal force but, in self-defence, as the last resort, we exercise that power with full restraint. During this meeting, we urged BGB to ensure the border remains secure so that such incidents do not happen," BSF DG Daljit Chaudhary told reporters.

The main focus of discussions was also Indian Insurgent groups operating in Bangladesh.

"Location of camps and movement of armed miscreants inside India was also on agenda," said an official, adding that both sides agreed to undertake combined efforts and increase number of coordinated patrols especially during late hours of nights to early morning in vulnerable areas, along with educating border population regarding the sanctity of the International Border.

DG BGB Siddiqui said there was no discussion on reworking the India-Bangladesh border treaty which was agreed upon in 1975."This was not in purview of this meeting," he said.

The two forces also agreed to hold the next DG-level conference in Dhaka next year.