BSF aplogises to scribe; charges govt officer with helping miscreant

Shillong, Mar 7: Reacting to media reports about alleged assault on scribes by BSF personnel last month near Indo-Bangla border, the para military force has said it will take action against the erring jawans.

The BSF while apologising for the incident as a ''misdemeanour'' on the force's image, however, charged civil and police authorities in Jowai with helping some ''anti-social elements'' who were involved in harrasing Indian citizens hailing from 24 Paraganas district of West Bengal hired by NBCC to construct fencing along the border.

Narrating the incident a BSF press release today said different Meghalaya-based NGOs and media visited the international border at SP Tilla area of Jowai in the later part of last month.

Additional district magistrate of Jowai W Nongsiej and Dawki Police station in-charge S I Kharbundon were also part of the visiting team to inquire about the ongoing border fencing work by the National Building Construction Company.

The BSF said they were not aware of the visit as no prior intimation was despatched to them from any concerned quarters.

At SP Tilla, a few temporary structures were erected by the NBCC to house about 60 to 100 labourers for the project which the local people had been protesting saying huge land of Meghalaya would be lost to Bangladesh as per the existing demarcation.

''On arrival at the spot, some miscreants from among the visiting team entered the labour camp, threatened them to leave the place and not work for the NBCC,'' the release said adding some of the group even inflicted cigaratte burn injuries on the labourers.

''One of the miscreants displayed a pistol and threatened that he would open fire in case they raise any alarm,'' the release said.

The miscreant also took Rs 3,500 from one labourer forcefully, the BSF said adding ''such barbaric activities are not pardonable at all and instead of booking those culprits under the law of the land the representatives of the civil administration and police protected the illegal elements and asked for pardon on behalf of those elements''.

In order to avoid recurrence of such incidents in future the concerned civil authorities may inform the concerned BSF Bn Commandant in advance about the proposed visit of any kind of delegation to the border area, it added.

The unfortunate incident of SP Tilla, where ''our citizens were treated mercilessly by the anti-social elements and that too in the presence of concerned civil/police authorities is an alarming issue and the culprits need to be identified and punished as per the law of the land''.

Regarding ''manhandling of press people by BSF Jawans of BOP SP Tilla''the commandant 67 Bn BSF had been directed to indentify the delinquent jawans and punish them under intimation to IG BSF Shillong.

UNI