GUWAHATI: A 35-year-old man from Assam’s Sribhumi district, who went missing on Thursday morning near the India-Bangladesh border, has been found in Bangladesh, where the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has alleged that he was involved in drug and arms smuggling.
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The man, identified as Balai Namasudra, is a resident of Gobindapur village in Sribhumi district and works as a fisherman, according to his family.
Balai’s wife, Mamata Namasudra, said he regularly went fishing near the border pillar. On Thursday morning, around 5:30 AM, he went to collect fish from a net he had placed on Wednesday evening.
“Usually he returns in a few hours, but on Thursday, he didn’t return till afternoon. We started searching for him and lodged a missing report at Sribhumi Sadar Police Station in the evening,” she said, adding that she was later informed that her husband had been found in Bangladesh.
Mamata said that later on Thursday, someone from Bangladesh contacted her on WhatsApp and asked for photocopies of Balai’s voter ID, Aadhaar card and, if possible, his passport.
She then approached the Latu Police Outpost near their village, but officials asked her to visit Sadar Police Station, saying the matter involved an international border.
On Saturday, Mamata said she learned more about the case after someone showed her a BGB social media post about the arrest of an Indian man with drugs. She recognised the man in the video as her missing husband.
She alleged that her husband had been framed and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring him back to India.
Senior BSF officials on Saturday said the BGB had informed them that an Indian man was arrested with Yaba tablets and a pistol on Friday. They said talks between the two sides are underway.
Earlier this year, two Indians were allegedly kidnapped from the Zero Point area along Sribhumi and Cachar, triggering protests in both districts.