Indian farmer abducted by Bangladeshi nationals from Cooch Behar borderland: Rights group alleges BSF inaction

By A Representative

In a deeply troubling development that has sparked outrage among human rights advocates, a 52-year-old Indian farmer and spiritual ascetic, Mr. Ukil Barman, was allegedly abducted in broad daylight from Indian territory by Bangladeshi nationals. The incident occurred on April 16, 2025, near Gate No. 25 under the Fulbari Border Outpost in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district. Despite repeated pleas, the Border Security Force (BSF) reportedly refused to intervene.

According to a formal complaint submitted to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) by Kirity Roy, Secretary of Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM) and National Convenor of PACTI, Mr. Barman was forcibly taken across the Indo-Bangladesh border while he was resting on his farmland, which lies beyond the border fencing but within Indian territory. His wife, Ms. Shoybya Barman, witnessed the abduction and rushed to the BSF for help, only to be allegedly ignored.

"This horrifying incident of abduction of Mr. Ukil Barman by Bangladeshi nationals from Indian territory in broad daylight, right under the nose of our border forces, is a blatant failure of the state to protect its own citizens," said Kirity Roy. "It is beyond comprehension that an innocent farmer and monk can be taken across the international border while BSF personnel remain mute spectators. This silence is complicity."

Mr. Barman, a Dalit farmer and ascetic, is the primary breadwinner of a seven-member family in Paschim Sitalkuchi village, under Sitalkuchi Police Station. For years, he had cultivated four bighas of land near the border and followed BSF protocols by registering his identity before entering the fenced area.

The family’s worst fears were confirmed when Bangladeshi news channel Samakal News aired video footage showing Mr. Barman in the custody of the Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB). The footage, now widely circulated online, shows him in detention—alive, but helpless.

MASUM’s letter to NHRC points to a possible motive behind the abduction: just moments before Mr. Barman was taken, a BSF personnel had allegedly shot and killed a Bangladeshi national and dragged the body into Indian territory. That incident, reportedly from the same Bangladeshi village, was covered by media outlet Prothom Alo.

The abduction of Mr. Barman, if retaliatory, marks a dangerous escalation of cross-border hostilities. “If this is vengeance,” Roy states in the complaint, “then common citizens are being used as pawns in a violent cycle of unaccountability.”

Despite filing a missing person diary (GDE No. 738/25) on April 16, the Sitalkuchi police have not registered an FIR, even though the act qualifies as a cognizable offence. MASUM claims police only acknowledged the gravity of the situation during a family visit on April 19 but still failed to take legal action.

MASUM is urging the NHRC to treat this case with utmost seriousness and to press for immediate diplomatic steps to ensure Mr. Barman's release. The organization also calls for a full investigation into the conduct of BSF personnel and the failure of Sitalkuchi police to act.

“Justice must not only be done—it must be seen to be done, so that the people who live in the shadow of the border do not lose all faith in the protection and dignity that the Indian State owes them,” Roy emphasized.

This case adds to growing concerns about civilian vulnerability in sensitive border areas, and the need for greater transparency and accountability from both security and law enforcement agencies operating in these zones.

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