Syed Ali Mujtaba

 Kolkata- Muslim youth from West Bengal bordering Bangladesh are regularly being targeted for being foreign nationals. One such incident has come to light in Feb 2022 when custodial torture of an Indian youth took place on suspicion of being a Bangladeshi. Such incidents are disproportionately growing on the Bangladesh border but it’s hardly reported in the so-called national media.

One such incident has come to light on Feb 26, when a Muslim youth named Saibuddin Gazi, age 26, resident of village Daharkanda, Police Station and block Swarupnagar of the North 24 Pargana district of West Bengal was brutally tortured by the three constables of the BSF at Hakimpur Border outpost.

When the victim was going to Swarupdaha market via Kamarpota, three BSF personnel apprehended him and took him to Hakimpur Border outpost and tortured him gravely injuring his back and leg and other parts of his body.

The victim remained in the BSF custody for seven hours after that he was handed over to the Customs officials situated at Tetuliya, who checking his documents released him finding him to be an Indian national.

This incident is among a spate of similar incidents of torture, physical assault, illegal detention, and extrajudicial killings going on against the Muslims in the bordering villages in West Bengal with Bangladesh.

The arbitrariness of the violence suggests that it was motivated and intentional and to target a particular community on the basis of religion. The incident is another instance of custodial violence by the BSF and subsequent impunity by the customs officials.

Inspector Jayprasad, Debanan Jha, and Rakesh tortured the victim in the Hakimpur Border outpost by tying his hands, feet, eyes, and face of the victim with rope and cloth. They abused him and assaulted him with thick cable wire, injuring him gravely on his back and legs. Evident were bruising marks on the injured part of the victim’s body.

The victim filed a complaint to the SP Basirhat Police station against the perpetrators of the crime but no FIR was ever lodged against them because they held official positions.

Highlighting the incident Kirity Roy, Secretary, MASUM and National Convener, PACTI sought urgent intervention of the National Human Rights Commission in this matter.

He also demanded that the complaint of the victim must be investigated and the criminals must be brought under trial and prosecuted. The victim should be compensated adequately and his security and safety must be ensured. He also demanded that the BSF personnel should be posted at the international border and not near the villages bordering Bangladesh.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist. He can be contacted at syedalimujaba2007@gmail.com