Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) caught 11 Indian fishermen for illegally intruding into Bangladesh territory from the Pamda River at Charghat upazila of the district yesterday noon, hours after the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) picked up nine Bangladeshi fishermen and a minor boy, who were fishing in the Padma River near Sariakhal under the upazila, in the morning. BSF members from Kagmari BSF camp, caught the fishermen breaking norms and took them to the Indian side at around 11:00am, Lt Col Shahjahan Siraj, director of Rajshahi BGB-1 Battalion, told this correspondent. BGB protested the arrest and requested BSF officials to return the fishermen. As the Indian side did not respond, BGB members of Charghat BGB camp caught 11 Indian fishermen from the river. There is no border pillar in the river and the midstream is usually considered as the border. So, the fishermen of both countries often cross the border while fishing and the border guards of both sides accept it, said Lt Col Siraj. The BSF have broken the norms by arresting the Bangladeshis. Now if they do not return our nationals, we will not also return their nationals. If our citizens are sent to jail, we will also send their citizens to jail, he added. The Indian fishermen have been kept under BGB custody since their arrest, he added. BGB officials did not disclose the names of the fishermen of either country, but locals said all the Bangladeshi fishermen are from Miapur area of Charghat municipality.
2016 / thedailystar.net