Abhijit Nath, NET Correspondent, Tripura

Agartala, June 13, 2021: Reports of an Indian citizen being abducted and taken to Bangladesh have surfaced recently. Allegedly he has been abducted by Bangladeshi nationals and is in the custody of BDR.

Rashid Alam, 35, a resident of Sobhapur Gram Panchayat near the Indo-Bangladesh Border was stopped by the Border Guards of Bangladesh (BGB) on June 5 while going to his pond on the other side of the border.

This led to a verbal spat between the BGB guards and Alam. Reportedly, Alam berated them saying “Illegal works are allowed on the border but I can’t go to my pond for my work. I will complain against you”.

On June 6th two days after the incident, a stranger visited his home in the guise of a mattress seller. Smelling a rat Rashid sent him away. The alleged mattress seller returned with a certain Kamal Hussain from Bangladesh and abducted Alam, taking him to the other side of the border. When Rashid’s wife raised the alarm, locals rushed to the spot. Meanwhile, the alleged miscreants were already in Bangladesh.

Reports have surfaced that Alam was handed over to Bangaldesh Rifles (BDR) and he is in their custody. However, no trace of Alam has been found for seven days. Alam’s alleged abduction has been brought to the notice of the BSF as well.

Making the mystery of Alam’s abduction murkier a higher official of Sepahijala district police administration told Northeast Today that the Rashid Alam is one of the known notorious and anti-social elements in that area.

He often crosses to Bangladesh and this time, he might have left again in the guise of kidnapping. However, information has been sent to the BSF and concerned locals have requested to conduct a flag meeting with BGB and BDR to dig more into the alleged case of abduction.