BDR, BSF trade fires

Two stone quarry labourers sustained bullet injuries as BSF and BDR men traded over 400 rounds of bullet on Jaintapur, Sripur, Tamabil, Protappur and Bichhnakandi borders in Sylhet for over an hour since midday yesterday.
Injured Abdul Jalil and Khokan Miah were given treatment at Jaintapur Upazila Health Complex.
Border sources said, the trouble erupted at about 11:00 am when around 30 Indian Khasias backed by some BSF men intruded into Bangladesh territory near the border pillar nos 1279 and 1280 and attempted to plough up paddy fields for the second consecutive day.
The intruders also brought two power tillers along with them.
On information, BDR men from Sripur and Jaintapur border outposts reached the spot and asked them to leave the area, 200 yards inside the zero line between Tamabil and Sripur border. The Indians, however, denied leaving the place.
The BDR men also asked the BSF for taking the Indians back, but to no effect, sources said.
Instead, BSF men from the Naljur border camp started firing, prompting the BDR members to retaliate. Soon the BDR-BSF gunfight spread to other nearby borders upto Protappur and Bichhnakandi, sources added.
Around 400 gunshots were traded during the fracas, BDR sources said wishing anonymity.
Commanding Officer of 21 Battalion of BDR, Lt Col Khondaker Zahirul Alam told The Daily Star in the afternoon that he contacted his BSF counterpart and made the request for stopping the trouble created by Indian tribesmen inside Bangladesh territory but it did not work.
The BDR had no other option but to retaliate as BSF men opened fire on Bangladeshi civilians, Col Alam added.
Syed Aminur Rahman, in-charge of Tamabil Land Customs station, told The Daily Star in the afternoon that the border trade remained suspended since noon yesterday.
On February 4, the BSF attempted to occupy some croplands on Padua border and traded gunshots with BDR.
Since then, they along with some Khasia tribesmen had been attempting to occupy some Bangladesh lands on Dibir haor, Protappur (Padua) and Tamabil borders.
BSF also shot a quarry labourer dead last month on Bichhnakandi border.