Bangladesh Media Claims On Cross-Border Entry Of Hadi’s Killers ‘False And Fabricated’: BSF

The Border Security Force (BSF) has strongly refuted reports in sections of the Bangladeshi media claiming that two accused in the murder of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi had entered India through the Haluaghat border area of Bangladesh.

The border guarding force termed the reports as false, fabricated, and misleading, asserting that “there is no evidence to substantiate such claims.”

The BSF, which is mandated to guard the India-Bangladesh border, said “no such arrest or interception has taken place in the Meghalaya sector and that there has been no illegal cross-border movement.”

“The claims are completely false, fabricated, and misleading, and there is no evidence to support them,” BSF chief in Meghalaya, Inspector General OP Upadhyay, told ANI on Monday when asked about a Bangladeshi media report claiming two accused in Sharif Osman Hadi’s murder had entered India.

When asked about some Bangladeshi media reports alleging that the Meghalaya Police had apprehended the accused after they entered India, the officer said, “Just three days ago, Bangladeshi media quoted an IG-rank officer stating that no such evidence existed. Now, a DIG-level officer has made contradictory remarks. It was alleged that Meghalaya Police apprehended the individuals, but upon verification, Meghalaya Police denied these claims. All reports in the Bangladeshi media are incorrect.”

Upadhyay further said, “There has been no such cross-border movement from the Meghalaya sector, and even the Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB) has not reported any such incident.”

“The BGB is a highly professional force. The claim that the individuals entered India from a location nearly 300 km from Dhaka, despite extensive CCTV surveillance and checkpoints in Bangladesh, is highly implausible. Therefore, the allegations are highly unlikely, totally false and fabricated,” the IG added.

Bangladeshi media claimed that two accused in Osman Hadi’s murder – Faisal Karim Masud and Alamgir Sheikh – fled the country and entered India through the Meghalaya border. They reported that the accused escaped to India through the Haluaghat border in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh district and are currently present in the Indian state.

Bangladeshi media reported that the Additional Commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, during a media briefing, stated that Faisal Karim Masud and Alamgir Sheikh had entered India through the Haluaghat border in Mymensingh with the help of local accomplices.

Sharif Osman Hadi, 32, was critically injured after being shot in the head during an election campaign in Dhaka on December 12. He was subsequently airlifted to Singapore for specialised medical treatment, where he died on December 18. (ANI)