6th B'deshi national in Meghalaya cross-border armed attack found, later dies

Shillong, Aug 12 Villagers found the sixth Bangladeshi national allegedly involved in the armed attack in a Meghalaya village along the India-Bangladesh border in the state's South West Khasi Hills district, who subsequently succumbed to his injuries, police said on Tuesday.

Meghalaya's South West Khasi Hills district police said that just before the evening of August 11, the police staff of the Nonghyllam police station received information that the villagers of Kaithakona village have found one seriously injured Bangladeshi national, who identified himself as Akram.

Later, the villagers handed him over to the Border Security Force (BSF) and thereafter the BSF and the police took the Bangladeshi intruder to Maheshkola Primary Health Centre (PHC) but due to absence of Medical officer at the PHC, he was rushed to another PHC at Khonjoy, where he was declared brought dead by the Medical officer, a police official statement said.

According to the statement, the body of the deceased Bangladeshi national has been brought by the police to Civil Hospital in Mawkyrwat for conducting post mortem examination in presence of a Magistrate as mandated by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) guidelines.

A suo-moto case has been registered at the Nonghyllam police station under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and investigation is underway to ascertain facts and circumstances leading to the incident.

Akram was suspected to be part of a gang of eight to nine armed Bangladeshi men, which crossed over into Rongdangai village on August 7 midnight, assaulted a local shopkeeper Balsrang Marak, and looted cash and valuables before fleeing back towards the border.

Police said that the Bangladeshi gang kidnapped Marak and they took him towards New Rongdangai village.

While moving, Marak was able to free himself and he ran away from the Bangladeshi gang's captivity.

Villagers, along with security personnel, later chased and caught four of them, including the gang leader Mefus Rehman (35), the police said, adding that the security forces on Sunday arrested the fifth Bangladeshi national, involved in the attack.

Rehman is a Bangladesh Police constable.

According to the police, during a subsequent search on August 8, a Bangladesh Police identity card, three medical prescriptions, three wireless handsets, an axe, a barbed-wire cutter, screw driver, pistol holster, a small knife, three micro-explosives, three wallets, four mobile phones, steel handcuff, three micro explosives and Bangladeshi and Indian currencies were recovered from the area.

The arrested Bangladeshi nationals are residents of Comilla, Jamalpur and Narayanganj districts.

Efforts are on to trace the remaining Bangladeshi attackers, the official said.

Meghalaya Police, along with the BSF troops, have been conducting a massive search along the India-Bangladesh frontiers.

Large stretches of the 443 km India-Bangladesh border with Meghalaya remained unfenced due to various reasons, including difficult terrain, water bodies, forests, and mountains.

However, border fencing work is underway in some portions to prevent cross-border crime, infiltration and movement of inimical elements.

Police suspect that the Bangladesh intruders might have crossed through these porous areas by swimming water bodies or using underground culverts.

Meanwhile, on August 7 early morning, eight suspected Bangladeshi nationals entered a stone quarry at Bagli, also in the South West Khasi Hills district.

Police immediately launched a search operation after receiving information, but the intruder managed to escape.

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