FIR filed against BSF personnel over death of 45-year-old Assam man: Police
Cachar SSP Numal Mahatta said the FIR has been registered against some BSF personnel on the complaint of the deceased’s family and a probe is underway
SILCHAR: A first information report (FIR) was registered on Monday in connection with the death of a 45-year-old man in Assam’s Cachar district after his family claimed he was beaten by the Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, a charge that the border guarding force has denied.
Cachar senior superintendent of police Numal Mahatta said the FIR has been registered on the complaint of the deceased’s family and a probe is underway. “The family claims Nirmal Namasudra was tortured to death. However, BSF maintains they found him in an inebriated state and rescued him. We are investigating all angles,” Mahatta said.
Mahatta said he had visited the district’s Katigorah area near the India-Bangladesh border and spoken with senior BSF officials. “The BSF has formed a committee to probe the incident. We are also awaiting the postmortem report, which will be crucial in establishing the facts,” he said.
According to the man’s family, Nirmal wasn’t feeling too well on Friday night and stepped out for fresh air at about 11:30pm. “Half an hour later, we heard his screams. Locals later told us the BSF had picked him up,” his brother Srimat said.
In the FIR, Srimat alleged that BSF personnel forcibly dragged his brother into their vehicle while locals tried to intervene. “When people protested, the BSF personnel threatened them with guns and rifles and hurled abuses,” the FIR said.
Nirmal’s sister-in-law, Sati Namasudra, said the BSF personnel later left Nirmal at the primary health centre. Doctors at the health centre told the family to shift Nirmal to the Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH) due to his critical condition. “We brought him to SMCH as advised, but despite initial treatment, he passed away at 9:30am on Saturday (August 2),” Sati said.
The incident triggered sharp protests by local residents. Nirmal’s family also refused to accept his body, demanding justice but were later persuaded. “They requested us to perform the last rites and assured us that justice will be served,” Sati Namasudra said.
BSF’s Mizoram & Cachar Frontier deputy inspector general (DIG) Ahsan Shahedi said their patrol team did not assault Nirmal. “He was found heavily intoxicated and injured. Our team rescued him and took him to the hospital. They even assisted the family in shifting him to SMCH. Unfortunately, he died en route,” Shahedi said.
He confirmed that an internal inquiry has been initiated. “A DIG-level officer and a medical professional are part of the investigation committee. If any wrongdoing is found, strict action will be taken,” he said on Monday.
A FIR was registered on Monday afternoon at Kalain police station. The officer in-charge, Joseph Keivom said that the death occurred at Kalain, so the case has been transferred to Kalain police station.
