india

Updated: Oct 12, 2019 13:52 IST

Five Bangladeshi nationals, including three personnel of Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), were detained by the Border Security Force (BSF) after they were assaulted by villagers in Tripura’s Sepahijala district on Thursday.

A press release by BSF’s Tripura Frontier late on Friday said the Bangladeshi nationals were detained from Rahimpur village located along the India-Bangladesh international border at Sonamura.

It said the Bangladeshi nationals, including two women informants, had entered India through Sonamura on October 10 to arrest an Indian national Abu Khair in Rahimpur.

The RAB’s personnel allegedly assaulted Khair’s wife and daughter as his family members resisted the action. Their neighbours came to Khair’s house after hearing their cries and beat up the Bangladesh nationals and then handed them over to BSF.

“During preliminary questioning, it was revealed that the three males are part of Intelligence Branch of 11 Rapid Action Battalion, Bangladesh and tasked by Mr Mohidul Islam, Additional SP and Coy Cdr to carry out a covert operation to apprehend one Indian drug smuggler Abu Khair and another Bangladeshi drug smuggler Mashooq Mia..,” BSF’s press release said.

During the search, BSF recovered one 7.77mm pistol with seven rounds, two handcuffs, two civil identity cards and two RAB identity cards, seven cell phones, 1.5 lakh Bangla taka and a wallet with 2512 worth of banknotes of same currency from them.

The Bangladeshi nations were handed over to Border Guards of Bangladesh (BGB) on Thursday night after a company commander level flag meeting between the border forces.

BSF officials said that the five were handed over to Bangladesh authorities as a goodwill gesture under the Coordinated Border Management Plan.