NCP protests BSF killings, moves toward Indian High Commission

Staff Reporter :

The Dhaka North unit of the National Citizen Party (NCP) yesterday brought out a march toward the Indian High Commission in the capital, marking the 15th anniversary of the killing of Felani Khatun at the Bangladesh-India border.

Police set up barricades and halted the procession when NCP leaders and activists reached the road in front of the high commission area in Banshtala around 4:20pm, according to a correspondent on the scene. The marchers later held a brief street gathering there.

During the procession, participants chanted slogans including “Delhi or Dhaka, Dhaka, Dhaka,” “No to slavery, yes to freedom,” “Stop Indian aggression,” “Felani, we have not forgotten you,” and “Indian hegemony will not be accepted.”

Felani Khatun, 15, was shot dead by India’s Border Security Force (BSF) on January 7, 2011, at the Anantapur border under Phulbari upazila in Kurigram. Her body, which remained hanging from a barbed-wire fence for hours, triggered widespread outrage both inside Bangladesh and internationally.

Addressing the gathering after the march was stopped, NCP leaders said killings of Bangladeshi nationals by the BSF were still continuing, alleging that such incidents occurred more frequently along the Bangladesh-India border than anywhere else in the world.

Speakers also accused India of interfering in Bangladesh’s politics and economy during the Awami League’s time in office, claiming that such interference led to violations of voting rights and broader human rights abuses.

They further alleged that killings and enforced disappearances had taken place as part of what they described as a wider conspiracy, and demanded international action against India for “overt interference” in Bangladesh’s internal affairs. NCP leaders called for all officials allegedly involved in enforced disappearances and killings to be brought to justice.

Referring to the upcoming national election, the speakers described it as a decisive contest to protect Bangladesh’s sovereignty. They said the party would not accept interference in the electoral process from any foreign power, naming Washington, Moscow, Beijing and Delhi.

The police presence remained in place around the high commission area in the afternoon. There were no reports of injuries or arrests.