Kolkata: A BSF jawan fired in self-defense after a group of alleged Bangladeshi smugglers attacked him at Buraburi in Mathabhanga-1 of Cooch Behar district late on Saturday. The smugglers were trying to cut through the border fence.
While Bangladeshi media claimed that a 44-year-old Bangladeshi national was injured in the firing, BSF reported the matter to Mathabhanga Police.
“A BSF jawan was monitoring the border along with his colleagues when he found at least 10-12 men from the other side of the fence trying to enter India. When he tried to stop them, the accused men — all smugglers — tried to attack. him. In self-defence, he was forced to fire one round,” said a senior police officer.
A senior official of BSF’s South Bengal Frontier said: “In various operations, 2 Bangladeshi and 3 Indian citizens were caught illegally crossing the Indian border. Apart from this, taking major action against the smugglers, BSF seized 535 banned Phensedyl bottles, 400 strips of Tapentadol and rescued 2 cattle and 100 pigeons from the smugglers. They were trying to smuggle Phensedyl, medicines and. cattle from India to Bangladesh and pigeons from Bangladesh to India.”