M A I N   N E W S

Guns fall silent on border
BSF men’s bodies to be returned today

Guwahati, April 19
Guns fell silent on the Indo-Bangladesh border following an agreement between the two countries to maintain status quo ante regarding ownership of disputed territories.

Top BSF sources informed the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) personnel had retreated in Meghalaya sector, while in Assam sector, the BSF men had vacated positions seized from Bangladesh. The BDR retreat took place at Pyrdiwah in Meghalaya before noon, while the white flag was up at Rowmari after 3 p.m. as both sides decided to maintain status quo ante. The BSF agreed to take back bodies of five of its jawans at Rowmari sector even as 11 others were still reported missing. The bodies would be handed over by the Bangladeshi authorities at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

The Bangladesh Government was also said to have denied that the attacks by the BDR and army had its backing and termed it as “adventurism of its local commanders’’.

The BSF Director-General, Mr Gurbhachan Jagat, said the BDR and other Bangladeshi forces have vacated the area of Pyrdiwah, adding, “This was the result of the flag meeting between the BSF and BDR held earlier in the day”.

Stating that tension has reduced and firing stopped on the border, the BSF chief said the Bangladesh authorities would hand over by tomorrow bodies of the 15 BSF men killed in yesterday’s firing. Two injured BSF personnel were also in their captivity and were being treated, he added.

The Union Home Ministry, quoting reports from forward BSF outposts, had last night said 16 BSF personnel had been gunned down while two BDR men were killed when over 1,000 soldiers from the BDR and Bangladesh Army overran Boraibari, driving out about 1,000 villagers from their homes.

The Bangladeshi side had asked the BSF to furnish proof that the land they had occupied was part of India.

Two joint working groups (JWGs) between the two countries were already working to resolve border issues, Mr Jagat said. UNI, PTI