Local people and Border Guard Bangladesh members reportedly foiled an attempt by the Indian Border Security Force to push at least 150 people into Bangladesh between midnight past Thursday and Friday morning through the bordering Nalgaria and Noabadi areas of Singarbil union under Bijoynagar upazila in Brahmanbaria.
When the news of BSF鈥檚 push-in attempt spread to local people, they made announcements using public address system at local mosques to prevent the push-in, according to local people and BGB officials.
The BGB had increased its patrolling along the Indian border in the area to check the possible push-in.
Kokhon Mia, a resident of Nalgaria village, said that he heard the announcement via a mosque鈥檚 public address system at about 2:00am on Friday that the BSF tried to push people into Bangladesh and urged all to go to border.
鈥業 rushed to the border and saw lights, heard sounds of whistle on the Indian side when BGB members were also present there,鈥� Kokhon said, adding, 鈥業 stayed along the border all night.鈥�
Monir Haider, a resident of Noabadi village, said that he rushed to the border after hearing the announcement at a mosque at about 1:30am on Friday.
鈥業 saw four vehicles on the Indian side,鈥� Monir added.
BGB 25 Battalion commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Jabbar Ahmed said that they had increased patrolling on secret information that BSF tried to push 100-150 people into Bangladesh.
鈥楴o push-in has taken place over the incident, but we are observing the situation,鈥� he said, adding that the situation is now normal.
He said that they were on high alert in bordering areas considering the country鈥檚 overall situation.
On Thursday, BSF pushed 30 more people into Bangladesh through separate bordering points of Kulaura and Barlekha upazilas in Moulvibazar as pushing people into Bangladesh from India continued without following any legal process.
Earlier on Wednesday, the BSF pushed 60 more people into Bangladesh through Sylhet and Moulvibazar borders.
India began pushing people into Bangladesh on May 7 when there was an escalation in tensions between India and Pakistan.
About 300 people including Rohingyas and Indian nationals were pushed into Bangladesh between May 7 and May 11, according to the officials of the law enforcement agencies from bordering districts.
Dhaka has already requested New Delhi to stop any such attempts to push people into Bangladesh territory through different bordering points.
The request was made in a diplomatic communication sent to New Delhi on May 9, a foreign ministry official in Dhaka confirmed.
While talking to reporters following the ninth meeting of the advisory council committee on law and order at the secretariat in Dhaka on May 12, BGB director general Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui said that the BSF had been attempting to push 200-300 people from the Indian side, opposite to Khagrachari, into Bangladesh for the past two days.
He said that the BSF pushed 202 individuals into Bangladesh on May 7 and May 8 through the unpopulated areas.
The BGB chief mentioned that among those pushed in were 39 Rohingyas who had previously gone to India from Bangladesh.