Refrain from altercation at the border: Mamata
Malda: “Refrain from altercation at the borders. Securing the borders is the job of the BSF. In case of any untoward situation, the administration will look into it,” Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cautioned border residents, in Malda, on Tuesday.
From the government benefit distribution programme in Malda, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday forbade the villagers living in areas adjacent to India-Bangladesh Border to indulge in any dispute at the border. “Guarding the international border is a matter of BSF. In case of any unrest, residents should not go there. The police and administration using the public address system should ask the border residents to return to the Indian side and then the administration can address the issue,” stated Banerjee.
Incidentally, with the change in guards in Bangladesh with an interim government taking the reins of the country, there have been regular reports of skirmishes on the India Bangladesh border. The total length of the India-Bangladesh border is approximately 4,096 kilometres (2,545 miles), making it the fifth-longest land border in the world. Out of this, the Indian state of Bengal shares a 2,217 km stretch. The border is guarded by the BSF on the Indian side. The recent clashes are over erecting of fences by the BSF in the unfenced areas of the border. This has met with resistance from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Bangladesh nationals have been resisting which have led to clashes between the two sides. “However, I hope that peace and normality will return soon between the two countries,” stated Banerjee.
The Chief Minister, however, asked residents to keep a strict vigil. “All border residents should remain cautious. No terrorists or antisocial elements should be harboured by anyone in our villages. In such a case, the matter should be immediately brought to the notice of competent authorities,” stated the Chief Minister.
She stressed on improved public relations and advised public representatives as well as administrative officers, the DM and BDOs to visit households, interact with common people. “Visit their houses, take tea leaves and milk for them. Ask them to prepare tea. While drinking tea, enquire about their problems. It does not cost much to do this. Resolve their problems,” advised Banerjee.
She also expressed shock over the RG Kar case verdict, criticising the judgment that denied capital punishment. She emphasised that heinous crimes, especially those involving violence against women, should warrant the strictest penalties. She recalled Bengal’s passing of the Aparajita Bill, which proposed the death penalty for such crimes, but lamented that the Centre has not yet acted on it.
