Unfolding The Truth: Inquiry finds India’s role in abductions
Staff Reporter :
In a landmark disclosure, the Inquiry Commission on Enforced Disappearances has implicated Indian involvement in a systemic pattern of enforced disappearances in Bangladesh.
The findings, presented in a report titled “Unfolding the Truth,” were submitted to Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the state guest house Jamuna.
The five-member commission, led by retired Justice Mainul Islam Chowdhury, outlined cross-border operations and disturbing implications regarding the fate of detainees.
The report stated, “Indian involvement in Bangladesh’s system of enforced disappearances is a matter of public record.” It further revealed intelligence indicating collaboration in cross-border captive exchanges.
The commission highlighted allegations that some Bangladeshi detainees remain imprisoned in Indian facilities.
It recommended that the Ministries of Foreign and Home Affairs intensify efforts to identify and secure the release of these individuals. However, it acknowledged jurisdictional limitations in pursuing investigations beyond Bangladesh’s borders.
Notable cases mentioned in the report are Shukhranjan Bali and Salahuddin Ahmed. Shukhranjan was abducted from the Supreme Court premises, Bali later surfaced in an Indian jail, raising concerns about coordinated cross-border operations.
Salahuddin was detained in 2015, the BNP leader described being held in harsh conditions at a facility managed by the RAB Intelligence Wing in Dhaka before being transported to the India-Bangladesh border and handed over to Indian authorities.
The commission’s investigation into the RAB facility, reportedly dismantled, corroborated Ahmed’s account through testimonies from witnesses and former RAB personnel. Evidence included details of torture chambers and destroyed detention cells.
The report cited testimonies from soldiers detailing exchanges at the Tamabil border in 2011. In one instance, two captives received from India were reportedly killed shortly after the exchange. In another, a captive was handed over alive to another Bangladeshi team.
The report also documented Bangladeshi captives being transferred to Indian authorities, suggesting a high degree of coordination between the security forces of both nations. Bangladeshi personnel were reportedly disguised during operations in Indian territory.
The revelations have drawn significant attention from human rights groups and political observers, who have called for transparency and accountability from both governments to address these alarming findings.