Bangladesh detains 66 Indians after entering from southeastern border town: Official

By SM Najmus Sakib

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - Bangladeshi border security guards detained 66 Indian nationals on Wednesday for infiltration near Khagrachari, a city in the southeastern Chittagong Hill Tracts, officials confirmed.

Nazmun Ara Sultana, the district's deputy secretary, told Anadolu over the phone that the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) apprehended 66 Indian nationals, who she claimed were assisted by the Border Security Force (BSF) to infiltrate.

The BSF pushed them into Bangladesh between the morning and afternoon of Wednesday, according to her, who added that locals informed border security about the Indians who were roaming.

"They identified themselves as Gujarati Muslim," she said, referring to the western Indian coastal state of Gujarat.

The detainees have received humanitarian assistance and are now in the custody of border security forces, Sultana said, adding that the BGB is investigating the situation, but they will most likely be returned to India sooner.

These Indians were flown to the border from Gujarat and then pushed into Bangladesh via the Shantipur border area by Indian border forces, local Jamuna TV claimed, citing some of the detained Indians.

According to Indian media, the Gujarat Police detained over 1,000 people who were described as "Bangladeshi" and destroyed their makeshift homes.

Gujarat Police detained undocumented "Bangladeshis" following the April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed 26 people at the Pahalgam tourist resort.

This is "unacceptable," National Security Advisor Khalilur Rahman told reporters in Dhaka in response to a question about the arrested Indians, who were allegedly pushed by Indian border security forces into Bangladesh.

India has been notified of the forced entry by its border security forces, he said, adding: "If any Bangladeshi citizens are found (in India), they have also been told to send them through a formal process."