Dhaka brushes aside Delhi plan for joint border patrol

Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan has brushed aside an Indian proposal for joint patrolling of the border between the two countries.

"Such exercise is not feasible," he told The Daily Star yesterday.

India proposed the joint patrol during the biennial meeting of the heads of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) in New Delhi in April.

India suggested that a modality should be worked out so that the border security personnel of both countries could jointly patrol to prevent smuggling, illegal immigration and other cross-border illegal activities.

Foreign ministry sources said Dhaka was not interested in the proposal as it will allow the BSF to enter Bangladesh territory at will. This will have a 'grave political implication', they said.

Meantime, our correspondent in Delhi Pallab Bhattacharya reports that Indian Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani has told parliament that India was yet to get a response from Bangladesh on its proposal.

Advani claimed that the BSF and the BDR have agreed on joint patrolling and India has sent a proposal to Bangladesh for working out the modalities.

Advani told the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament, yesterday that the federal government was in touch with administrations of the border states and a necessary number of BSF men would be deployed.

Delhi officials said joint patrol will not entail simultaneous exercise along either side of the border but on certain scheduled days mutually agreed upon.