BGB protests 'speculative' report on border conference with BSF

The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has issued a formal protest against a report published in a national daily regarding the 57th Director General-level conference between the BGB and India's Border Security Force (BSF) . In a press release issued late on Sunday night, the force termed the report, titled 'Mysterious gap in the two countries' statements', as "speculative and factually incorrect" .

The report had claimed that the use of the term 'border deaths' instead of 'border killings' in the joint press statement indicated a weakness in the BGB's position. The BGB has outright rejected this claim. The force stated that the term 'killing' has been used in the official record of discussions – the Joint Record of Discussions (JRD) – and that the BGB has never wavered from this stance . The BGB clarified that to ascertain the true position of any conference, the formal document of the core discussions is the authoritative record, not the brief press statement.

The report also claimed that the absence of the terms 'push-in' and 'border killings' from the joint press statement meant these issues were not given importance during the meeting. The BGB has also denied this claim. In its protest letter, the BGB stated that its press release had detailed all of Bangladesh's concerns, including push-ins, border killings, construction of illegal infrastructure within 150 yards of the international border, drug smuggling, and the activities of armed groups in hilly areas, and that these issues were not only discussed but were formally recorded in the JRD .

The report had described the difference between the joint statement and the BGB's separate press release as 'mysterious'. The BGB explained that this is a completely normal institutional process, a standard part of international diplomatic practice for the host side to issue a brief joint statement while the participating country elaborates on matters related to its own national interests.

The report had also alleged, citing various sources, that the BGB delegation had 'surrendered' to the BSF and taken a 'compromising stance'. The BGB stated that not a single verifiable piece of evidence or document was presented to support these serious allegations. The force claimed that the firmness shown by the BGB at the field level on the recent push-in issue was reflected in the Delhi conference .

Regarding the report's suggestion that Bangladesh's 'position paper' had prematurely reached the BSF, the BGB explained that exchanging agendas and relevant documents before a Director General-level meeting is an established norm. The force added that presenting this routine formal process as a 'leak of secret information' was deliberate.

The report had also called the BGB Director General's meeting with Indian Home Minister Amit Shah a 'secret meeting'. The BGB clarified that it is a custom for the head of the guest force to pay a courtesy call on the host country's home minister during every border conference, citing that the BSF Director General had paid a similar call on Bangladesh's Home Adviser during the 56th conference held in Dhaka . The BGB stated that this meeting was pre-scheduled and approved, and that Bangladesh's position on border killings and push-ins was firmly presented there, and no letter mentioned in the report was handed over during the meeting .

The report also attempted to question the BGB Director General by mentioning his training in India. The BGB termed this attempt "illogical and dangerous," stating that officers from Bangladesh's military and law enforcement agencies regularly undergo training in various countries including India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Turkey, and China, and that an officer's loyalty cannot be judged by the country providing the training.

The BGB stated that responsible and fact-based journalism on sensitive matters like border security is crucial for the national interest, but it must be based on verified information and authentic documents. It called attempts to tarnish the force's image through speculation and unnamed sources contrary to the principles of objective journalism, urging the newspaper to play a responsible role in presenting accurate information by publishing this protest letter.