Showing an oblique reference to the cruel death of Felani Khatun by Border Security Force (BSF), Home Adviser Lt Gen (retd) M Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has ordered the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) members not to show their backs on the bordering areas.  

“We don’t want to see the recurrence of such a heinous death like Felani Khatun. Discharge your duties upholding your professionalism without showing your backs on the borders,” he categorically said on Saturday.

Felani Khatun was a 10-year-old Bangladeshi girl who was shot and killed by Indian BSF on 7 January 2011, along the Bangladesh–India border but the justice is still elusive.

Meanwhile, Swarna Das, a 16-year-old school girl, met the same fate as the BSF killed her on the Bangladesh-India border in Kulaura upazila of Moulvibazar last Sunday night.

Earlier on 13 August, former Home Adviser Brig Gen (Rtd) M Sakhawat Hossain also came up with the same call urging the BGB men to stand firm on the border, emphasising that the era of retreating is over.

While addressing a programme at the BGB headquarters in Dhaka, the incumbent home adviser also echoed the voice expressing his firm stance against such brutality on the Bangladesh-India border.

Amid the rampant corruption allegations against the members of law enforcement agencies, Alam said the government will take punitive action against those involved in bribery and corruption.

“They will be fired, if necessary. The BGB men must discharge their duties following the respective laws,” he said.

Ensuring the protection of border areas and curbing smuggling are key responsibilities of BGB personnel, he said.

BDST: 1809 HRS, SEP 07, 2024
MN/SMS