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http://www.tehelka.com/currentaffairs/july2001/ca070401indo1.htm
Dhaka, July 4 the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) top brass have been transferred just a few
days ahead of the Indo-Bangla border talks. Liberation War veteran Major
General Fazlur Rahman, Director General of BDR, border police, Brigadier
Salam Chowdhury, Deputy Director General and Colonel Rafiqur Rahman, Director
(Operation) were transferred to military jobs. General
Fazlur Rahman courted controversy after his "adventurism" in Padua
(Bangladeshi for Pyrdiwah), a frontier village bordering the hilly state of
eghalaya, which the BDR chief claimed has been used as a strategic base for
the "Mukti Fauj" in 1971 Bangladesh War of independence against Pakistan. In
April, the worst border skirmish in 30 years left several dead on both sides. Bangladesh
claims Indian troops had intruded into Bangladeshi territory, a claim India
rejected, saying the Border Security Force (BSF) patrol was well within their
own territory. India accused the "hawkish and hot-headed" General Fazlur
Rahman, who had kept the government totally in the dark, for ‘masterminding’
the operation. Questions are being asked as to what prompted Bangladesh to
take on the BSF after waiting three decades to resolve the dispute. An action like that leaves too many unanswered question, which are
sqeculated upon, not always to the government’s advantage The
Indian media did not hesitate to state that because the Bangladesh military
was a legacy of the Pakistan army, a possibility of Rahman being connected to
the notorious Pakistan Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) could not be ruled
out. However,
Bangladesh stood behind the "valiant freedom fighter" of the 1971 war. He has
been transferred to Bogra cantonment, as General-Officer-Commanding, 11
Infantry Division. In a telephone conversation with this correspondent,
Rahman said he was in the process of handing over the charge. He is expected
to take up his new assignment in the middle of July. Such
a decision has taken Bangladesh by surprise, which most have termed
"unprecedented". An action like that leaves too many unanswered questions,
which are speculated upon, not always to the government’s advantage. Daily
Star, an independent newspaper remarked in its editorial on July 3, "We are
intrigued by the abrasive manner in which the BDR chief and other three officers
have been apparently eased off. Indeed,
General Rahman’s unceremonious exit raises more questions than answers…... At
any rate, since Fazlur Rahman’s professionalism and inspiring leadership had
infused the border guard organisation of 45,000 men with new life and vigour,
all in 18 months, he should have deserved better," the newspaper, edited by
Mahfuz Anam, stated. The
newspaper argued, "Furthermore, he has had good credentials as an armed force
officer. He also carries with him the reputation of having written a book on
war tactics, said to be a ‘must’ reading for military science students in
Bangladesh. When a person of Fazlur Rahman’s leadership qualities is
jettisoned along with his deputies without sound reasons .., it is likely to
affect the morale of the troops and officers in the BDR." Rahman
served as BDR chief for 18 months before receiving his marching orders,
whereas according to tradition, senior military officers are on deputation in
BDR and remain in the command post for a period of three years. Prompt
pro-active responses from both India and Bangladesh resulted in delegations
of both countries holding parleys to resolve the border demarcation.
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina set the ball rolling after she spoke
to her Indian counterpart Atal Behari Vajpayee, expressed "regrets", and
promised a "thorough" investigation into the torture meted out to BSF jawans
and the mutilation of their bodies. She insists that Bangladeshi border
guards had opened fire in "self-defence". Hasina’s
assurance came hours after Delhi declared that the "Bangladesh government was
unaware of the unilateral action on the part of the BDR. India has blamed the
clashes on the BDR’s "criminal adventurism", saying its units had operated
independently of the Bangladesh government. Meanwhile,
the official Indo-Bangla talks, which lasted three days, concluded on
Wednesday. The second round of talks is slated to follow-up the meeting of
the Joint Boundary Working Group (JBWG), a body of officials of the two
countries, held in New Delhi in June after the April clashes left 17 BSF and
three BDR jawans killed and 100 injured. India has blamed the clashes on the
In
response to another question, he said they have raised the matter of the
recent killings of Bangladeshi people by the BSF. Odhikar, a NGO, claims that
at least 51 Bangladeshis were killed and another 300 injured in BSFfiring
during the last six months. According
to the terms of reference of the JBWG, other outstanding border disputes
centring around intrusion and firing by border guards will not come under the
purview of the talks; neither will outstanding issues related to maritime
border, trespassing and construction of barbed wire fencing by the Indian
side be addressed. A
14-member Indian delegation led by Meera Shanker, joint secretary of the
Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), arrived in Dhaka on Sunday to hold
talks with the Bangladesh team led by Janibul Haq, Joint Secretary, Ministry
of Home Affairs. There
are 4427.58 km long borders between India and Bangladesh. But 6.5 kilometres
still remains disputed. These span two kilometres at Muhurir Char in Tripura,
two kilometres at Lathi Kila in Assam and 1.5 kilometres at Daikhata in West
Bengal. Besides,
35 kilometres of the demarcated border between India and Bangladesh remain sans
border pillars at Berubari, Shingpara and Phudipara. Fifty-one enclaves
covering 7,000 acres of Bangladesh are lying with India and 111 enclaves
covering 17,000 acres of Indian land are lying with Bangladesh. However,
the series of tensions along the border demonstrates its fragility.
evertheless, the skirmishes have prompted Delhi and Dhaka to settle the
border problem once for all. |