Key Points

India’s fencing with Bangladesh has always been a sore spot. In January, the Foreign Ministry of Bangladesh summoned the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka and conveyed Dhaka’s deep concern over attempts to construct barbed-wire fencing. India made it clear that it had followed all protocols and agreements between the two governments.

India and Bangladesh share a 4,096.7-kilometre-long border. India began fencing in 1986 due to rising concerns about migration. New measures such as barbed-wire fencing, border lighting, installation of technical devices and cattle fences have been presented by India as necessary to secure the border against criminal activities.

The issue has become even more contentious after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina regime. The current dispensation does not share good ties with India and has leaned more towards Pakistan. In this context, the fencing of the borders is an even more important issue now. Bangladesh argues that fencing violates the India–Bangladesh Guidelines for Border Authorities, under which no defence structures can be built within 150 yards of the zero line of the international border. India, on the other hand, says a single fence along the border does not classify as a defence structure. Dhaka is worried that smart fencing by India will be used to keep tabs on Bangladesh.

While relations between India and Bangladesh have been cordial in recent years, the border has always been troubled. There have been large-scale illegal immigration, counterfeiting, arms smuggling and illegal cattle trade. A strong border control means those carrying out illegal activities will suffer: infiltrators will be checked, and cattle and drug smugglers will find it harder to operate. Most of them have set up shop near the border, and an open border has allowed such business to continue with ease.

The political dynamics add another layer of tension. The dispensation under Muhammad Yunus will strongly object to the fencing since it is aligned with Jamaat-e-Islami, an outfit implicated in managing large-scale illegal migration networks; any sort of guarded border would disrupt those rackets. Indian agencies claim that under the current Bangladeshi dispensation, Pakistan has full access to Bangladesh, and an open border would allow cross-border movement of terrorists into India’s eastern states. After Yunus took over, a large number of terrorists belonging to the Ansarullah Bangla Team were released; their whereabouts are unknown, and open borders could enable such elements to slip in.

There have been protests against the fencing in recent times at Chapainawabganj, Naogaon, Lalmonirhat and the Tin Bigha Corridor. Jamaat is not only opposing the fencing but also resisting the use of solar lights in border areas, since such checks would make cattle smuggling more difficult. Currently, around 950 kilometres of the border remain unfenced. In many stretches, existing fencing is loose, broken or rusted—concertina wire has deteriorated. In some areas the task is especially challenging because the border runs through rivers that constantly shift course.

- IANS