A South Dinajpur resident who was allegedly trying to sneak into Bangladesh was shot at by the BSF on Monday morning.

Bhajan Barman, 26, suffered the bullet injury to the left hand and is under treatment at the super-speciality hospital in Balurghat.

The resident of Dangbirol village under the jurisdiction of Patiram police station walked around 10km from his home to reach the border. He then allegedly tried to cross the barbed-wire fence.

“Jawans of the 57th battalion of the BSF posted at the Ghunshi border outpost, who were on routine patrolling, spotted him. They asked him to return but Bhajan reportedly tried to cross the fence. This made the BSF fire at him. He was hit by a bullet and fell on the spot,” said a source.

The BSF admitted the youth to the hospital. “He was trying to infiltrate into Bangladesh. Despite warnings, he tried to cross the border,” said a source in the central
security force.

Bhajan’s relatives admitted that he wanted to go to Bangladesh. “He is a day wage labourer and is not involved in any illegal activity. He tried to enter Bangladesh to visit one of our relatives,’ said Milan Singha, Bhajan’s brother-in-law.

The police said they had registered a case based on the complaint filed by the BSF.

Bangladeshis

Acting on a tip-off, troops of the 46th battalion of the BSF posted at the Baingach border outpost on the Bangladesh border in Jalpaiguri district apprehended three Bangladeshis on Monday late evening.

The trio were allegedly trying to enter India. All of them are residents of the Panchagarh district of Bangladesh. Later, the BSF convened a flag meeting with the Border Guard Bangladesh and handed over the trio to them.