[Attachment(s) from Kirity Roy included below]
To
The Acting Chairman
National Human Rights Commission
Faridkot House
Copernicus Marg
New Delhi-110001 20 December 2009
Respected Sir,
We received information from our fact finding that the victim was brutally murdered by some intruders from Bangladesh while he working on his farming land located near the Indo-Bangladesh Border.
The local villagers including his family members alleged that the murder of the victim was intentional and motivated as the victim along with other villagers tried to move against continuous atrocities by BSF upon the farmers owning their agricultural lands along the Indo-Bangladesh Border and dearth and on going state of no protection for the farmers. The joint movement of the victim and villagers was perceived as a threat to the interests of some smugglers and their aide i.e. some involved BSF personnel, for which he was eliminated. Our attached fact finding report gives details of the incident.
We are haunted by the horrified experiences of human sufferings in the bordering villages of Indo-Bangladesh Border in which persons are killed, brutally tortured. The subjugation and abuse on innocent villagers, unfair restrictions on agrarian populace on their agricultural activities are rule of the day. The outposts of Border Security Force (BSF) are located few kilometers inside the Indian Territory from the actual international border line, the Indian villagers living near to the border and possessing their agricultural land beyond these BSF outposts in fact have no protection. Due to posting of BSF camps inside the villages left a vast area of land an open play ground for the cross border criminals. The BSF deliberately failed take effective any steps driven by their own concocted interests.
I therefore demand before you to immediately intervene in this case causing an independent inquiry in this matter. The authorities in Bangladesh must also be required to initiate an impartial inquiry into this incident and take appropriate actions apprehending the miscreants responsible for murder of the victim Sukhen Mondal. I also urge before you to take immediate steps to ensure the safety of the villagers residing in the bordering villages.
Thanking you,
Yours truly,
Kirity Roy
Secretary, MASUM
&
National Convener
Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity (PACTI)
Name of the victim: - Sukhen Mondal (deceased), son of Mr. Biswanath Mondal, aged about-39 years, by faith-Hindu, by caste-Schedule Caste, address- Char Rajapur, Paschim Colony, Police Station-Raninagar, District-Murshidabad, West Bengal, India.
Name of the perpetrators:- (1) The Border Security Force jawans of Char Mourasi Border Security Force Camp, Company-G, Battalion-191, Police Station-Raninagar; (2) The Officer-in-Charge of Raninagar Police Station.
Place of incident: - In the farming land of Mr. Kanai Mondal at Char Katlamari, Police Station-Raninagar, District-Murshidabad.
Date & time of incident: - On 31.10.2009 at about 4pm
Case Details:- It is revealed during fact finding effort that the victim Sukhen Mondal with his uncle Mr. Kanai Mondal went to their farming land on 31.10.2009. Their farming land was located at Char Katlamari which is about 400 meters inside from Indo-Bangladesh Border under police station-Jalangi. They also took with them one tractor and its driver Mr. Alok Sarkar. Before entering into the farming land, they duly took permission of Border Security Force at Char Mourasi Border Security Force Camp which is about few hundred meters away from their farming land.
Then at about 4 pm suddenly seven miscreants armed with deadly weapons such as sword and hasua (a sharp cutting weapon) crossed the border line coming from village Khidirpur, Bangladesh and trespassed into the victim's farming land. Those miscreants encircled the victim and started committing murderous assault upon him by their sword and hasua with definite intention to kill him on the spot. The eyewitnesses Mr. Kanai Mondal and Mr. Alok Sarkar saw that the victim fell down on the ground receiving deep cutting injuries on several parts of his body. The attackers even hacked his body to pieces.
They immediately run towards the nearest Char Mourasi Border Security Force Camp in order to seek help of the BSF jawans. Those miscreants even tried to chase after them. But the on duty BSF jawans of the said BSF Camp did not take any action to apprehend those miscreants. They only said that it makes no difference to them either the body was taken by them or left at the place. They even did not bother to go at the place of incident. The miscreants swaggered into Bangladesh at their ease after the murder.
Then the villagers gathered at the place of incident and Mr. Pritom Mondal, member of Katlamari II Gram Panchayat arrived at the spot and telephoned at local Raninagar Police Station informing about the incident. Then at about 8 pm the Officer-in-Charge of Raninagar Police Station arrived at the spot along with other police men.
Mr. Kanai Mondal lodged one complaint at Jalangi Police Station against those miscreants. The police registered one criminal case vide Raninagar Police Station Case no. 704/2009 dated 31.10.2009 under sections 302/341 of Indian Penal Code. The police also registered a case of unnatural death being Raninagar Police Station U.D. Case no. 29/2009 dated 31.10.2009. The post mortem examination of the victim was done at Lalbagh Sub-Divisional Hospital, Murshidabad vide P.M. no. 249.
The police washed their hands by only registering one criminal case and there is no development in the matter of investigation.
During our fact finding effort, our team talked with the family members of the victim and several villagers who in single voice stated that the murder of the victim was an outcome of a criminal conspiracy hatched by cross border smugglers with the aid and connivance of a section of Border Security Force.
Mr. Pritom Mondal, member of Katlamari-II Gram Panchayat (Village Council) stated before our fact findings team that during the month of August, 2009 Mr. Bijoy Kumar Chowdhury, the Company Commandant of Char Rajanagar BSF and Mr. Tinkey from DIB, BSF used a trolley owned by a notorious smuggler in the area Mr. Swapan Mondal, son of Mr. Tarapada Mondal for patrolling in the river. When Mr. P. Pramanik, Commandant of 191 Battalion visited Char Rajanagar BSF, the victim and another villager Mr. Pritom Mondal informed him the aforesaid matter. Since then Mr. Bijoy Kumar Chowdhury, the Company Commandant of Char Rajanagar BSF and Mr. Tinkey from DIB, BSF threatened them to teach a good lesson. Since then the victim became an eyesore of the smugglers and Border Security Force.
The villagers residing in the nearby villages of Indo-Bangladesh Border lodged several complaints before the police, administration including the higher authorities of BSF bringing to their notice of the apathy of the farmers owing their farming lands near the Indo-Bangladesh Border. The villagers handed over copies of numerous complaints to our fact finding team. The villagers further alleged that the farmers have no protection against the intruders from Bangladesh as BSF posted their camps few kilometers inside from the actual border line in the bordering villages leaving a vast area of farming land well inside the Indian Territory an open play ground of crime for the cross border smugglers and intruders from Bangladesh. The villagers stated that the smugglers and intruders of Bangladesh take away their farming equipments, growing crops, sometimes beat them and even forcibly abduct them. The villagers stated that Border Security Force failed completely to provide any protection to the farmers. The villagers alleged that local BSF only serves the
All the efforts of the villagers to move the administration to minimize the apathy of the farmers went in deaf ears of the administration. Therefore the villagers prompted to build a local committee for protecting their farming lands. The victim and other villagers were members of the said committee. On 14.10.2009 the victim along with other villagers met with the Camp-in-Charge of Char Mourasi Border Security Force Camp and informed him about the committee but the Camp-in-Charge was not happy with such initiative and said that the villagers would carry out smuggling under the guise of such committee. The victim and other villagers tried to convince him saying that the committee would not carry out any illegal activities rather it would help BSF in apprehending the smugglers. Then they visited Rajanagar BSF BOP Head Quarter in order to meet with the Company Commandant Mr. Bijoy Pathak, but he was annoyed on the building of such committee by the villagers.
Again on 19.10.2009 the victim along with one villager Mr. Pritom Mondal went to meet with the Company Commandant of Rajanagar BSF BOP Head Quarter. But there Mr. Pritom Mondal was severely assaulted by Mr. Tinkey from DIB, BSF with his wooden button. He had to be hospitalized at Berhampore New General Hospital, Murshidabad for treatment.
On 24.10.2009 the villagers under Raninagar Police Station organized a rally and road block protesting against the ongoing atrocities of BSF, inaction of police and unholy nexus between the smugglers and some section of Border Security Force.
--
Kirity Roy
Secretary
Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha
(MASUM)
&
National Convenor (PACTI)
Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity
26 Guitendal Lane
Howrah 711101
West Bengal INDIA
Mobile: 09903099699
Tele Fax : +91-33-2640 4118
Phone: +91-33-2640 4520
e. mail : kirityroy@gmail.com
Web: www.masum.org.in
Attachment(s) from Kirity Roy
1 of 1 File(s)
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