Frisking of women done by 'Mahila Constables only': BSF after TMC MLA accuses force of touching women inappropriately

After a Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA accused BSF personnel of appropriately touching women while searching them during border movements, the border guarding force said that the frisking of women is done by only women constables.

Chaos erupted at the West Bengal assembly after Trinamool Congress legislator Udayan Guha accused personnel of the Border Security Force (BSF) of inappropriately touching women while searching them during border movement.

In a quick but rarest reaction to political comments, the BSF's Guwahati frontier in a tweet said: "More than 300 Mahila constables are deployed at Indo-Bangladesh International Border under BSF Guwahati Frontier for frisking and checking of women. Frisking of women is done by Mahila Constables only."

Soon after the controversy over the issue, a senior BSF official, requesting anonymity, toldthat the "BSF is a professional force that has always performed the mandated duties by adhering to the rules and regulations. BSF Mahila praharis are the ones who do frisking of females. The allegations of inappropriately touching women by BSF personnel are utterly baseless."

During the discussion on a resolution against tje BSF's jurisdiction extension, a ruckus erupted after TMC MLA Udayan Guha said, "When women cross the border, BSF personnel in the name of search, touch them inappropriately. No matter how much they say Bharat Mata Ki Jai, they cannot be patriotic."

Guha made the statement during a discussion on the Centre's decision to extend the BSF's jurisdiction up to 50km inside the international border.

The Centre earlier in the month of October had empowered the BSF to conduct searches, arrest suspects and make seizures up to an area of 50km inside Indian territory from the International Border (IB) along India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders.

The BSF, which was only empowered to take action up to 15 kilometres in Punjab, West Bengal and Assam, has now been authorised to extend its jurisdiction up to 50km without any hurdle or permission either from central or state governments.

While Punjab has already registered its protest against the decision, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said her government would take up the matter with the Centre.

( With inputs from ANI )

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