A Bangladeshi youth has been shot dead and another remains missing after Indian Border Security Force (BSF) personnel opened fire across the Maheshpur frontier early on 27 April.
The incident occurred near Pillar No 48, across from Madhupur village, within the Bagda police station area of India's North 24 Parganas district.
The deceased has been identified as Obaidul Islam, aged 23, son of Hanif Ali of Gopalpur village, Jadabpur Union, Maheshpur upazila. Following the news of his death, a wave of grief swept through his family.
According to local sources, on the night of 26 April, a group of seven to eight individuals from Gopalpur village crossed illegally into India. Around 1:30am, they encountered BSF personnel, who opened fire on them. Most managed to flee back into Bangladesh, but Obaidul and another youth were reportedly captured by the BSF.
Witnesses allege that Obaidul was subjected to brutal physical abuse before being shot dead by BSF personnel. At dawn, locals spotted a body lying inside Indian territory near Madhupur. Indian police from Bagda station later recovered the body. The whereabouts of the second youth remain unknown.
Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Rafiqul Alam, commanding officer of the 58 Battalion of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in Maheshpur, confirmed that the BSF battalion commander had informed him by phone around 8:45am of the recovery of a body. However, the BSF has not yet confirmed the nationality of the deceased.
He added that the body was being held at Bagda police station in India, and anyone wishing to claim the body’s nationality must liaise with BSF or Bagda police authorities.
Maheshpur police station Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Saiful Islam said he had been informed by local residents that a Bangladeshi youth was shot dead by the BSF and that the body had been taken away. The matter has been relayed to the BGB 58 Battalion commander by telephone.
