Verdict 'waits for approval'

Indian Border Security Force yesterday said the retrial in the Felani murder case was yet to be completed.

The second trial was incomplete as the special BSF court's ruling was yet to be approved by the BSF additional director general and director general, BSF DG Devendra Pathak told a joint media interaction here.

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

The press meet was organised after the conclusion of the biannual DG-level talks between the BSF and Border Guard Bangladesh.

Bangladeshi teenage girl Felani Khatun

was shot dead on the India-Bangladesh border near Choudhuryhat outpost in Cooch Behar of West Bengal in January 2011. Constable Amiyo Ghosh of 181 BSF battalion was accused of the murder.

After the fresh trial, the special BSF court last month acquitted Ghosh of the murder. Felani's father Nur Islam, the sole witness to the border killing, has already rejected the verdict and urged the Bangladesh government to help him file an appeal against the judgement, according to media reports.

The shocking photograph of the victim's body hanging from the barbed wire fence provoked international outrage.

Earlier in 2013, another BSF court had found the accused not guilty of murder. The case proceedings were reviewed by legal experts as per the BSF act and rules. The authorities ordered a fresh trial as they didn't agree with the court's findings. 

Speaking at the press meet, Pathak said the Felani issue was not on the official agenda of the BSF-BGB talks as the retrial in the case was incomplete.

However, Maj Gen Ahmed separately told representatives of Bangladeshi media that the Felani issue did figure in informal talks between the two sides. The BSF wanted the BGB know from the girl's family whether they wished the judicial process to continue or something else.

"We would like to know from Felani's family members if they were satisfied with the judicial process that has taken place so far and what would they do in future. We would then communicate their decision to the BSF," added the BGB chief.

On border killing, Ahmed said the BGB would identify the areas, particularly the border outposts where such killings take place, to carry out coordinated patrol with the BSF to address the problem.

He further said the BGB will launch an awareness campaign in the vulnerable areas to dissuade Bangladeshis from travelling across the border at night.

The BSF chief said his force usually uses non-lethal weapons along the border to the extent possible and opens fire in self-defence "only in extreme situations."

Bangladesh has already come out of the low-income country status to the middle-income category and its economic indicators are "very positive". So there is no reason for people to illegally migrate to India, said Ahmed.

He, however, noted that Bangladeshis do travel to India for medical treatment and meeting their relatives.

On smuggling of cows into Bangladesh from India, the BSF DG said the number of cows smuggled came down from 20 lakh to just four lakh after his force had taken stern action against it. "The BSF wants to stop it totally."

The BGB chief said the crackdown on cow smuggling provides Bangladesh with an opportunity to be self sufficient in livestock production.

"Bangladesh was once dependent on imported food grains, but now we are exporting our produce. Similarly, the clampdown on cow smuggling would help us build our livestock sector and attain self-sufficiency."

The BSF took special measures to curb cattle smuggling especially after Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh asked the force to check it effectively.

About illegal migration from Bangladesh to India, Maj Gen Ahmed said he would "beg to differ" in believing that any large scale migration was taking place along the frontier on India's eastern flank.

Pathak said the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) has not brought much challenges for the BSF and BGB as there was "no confusion" over border demarcation. He insisted that the historic accord will improve various aspects of border management.

On pushing fake Indian currency into India from across the border, Ahmed said he was sure that this was not being produced in his country. Some vested groups might have been using Bangladesh's land for "transit" in this regard, he noted.

He reiterated the commitment made by his country that Bangladesh's soil will not be allowed to be used against India.

He said the BSF handed them over names of some Indian insurgent groups, allegedly operating from Bangladesh. "We will not allow any criminal elements to use our soil against any of our neighbours, especially India."