9 hurt in border clash

Statesman News Service

MALDA, March 31: Nine people including culprits were seriously injured in two separate clashes between cattle smugglers and villagers along the India-Bangaldesh border under Habibpur Police Station last night. The injured were rushed to the hospital for treatment.Mr Satyajit Bandyopadhyay, SP, Malda today instructed the deputy superintendent of police (head quarter) to keep the villages under surveillance in order to curb border crime.In an incident in Dhumpur grampanchayat area under Habibpur Police Station last night a group of villagers belonging to the BJP intercepted a gang of twelve cattle smugglers when they were smuggling cattles to Bangladesh.Trouble broke out when another group of villagers tried to allow the culprits to go to Bangladesh. It was alleged by the local BJP leaders that the other group of villagers belonging to the CPI-M took commission from the cattle- smugglers.Meanwhile, the culprits crossed the unfenced border of India-Bangladesh taking advantage of the clash between the two village groups.Two persons Mr Niranjan Barman and Mr Dwijen Barman, belonging to the BJP, and three persons belonging to other group were injured following the clash and were admitted to the hospital.In another incident in Harihaat village under Aiho grampanchayat u-nder Habibpur Block villagers armed with bows and arrows chased a group of four cattle-smugglers finally intercepted them and recovered the cattles from their clutches .The four culprits, who claimed themselves to be Indian nationals and residents of neighbouring villages, were beaten severely and handed them over to the police. They were later admitted to the district hospital.The culprits were identified as Mohitosh Mandal, Niranjan Sarkar, Santa Das and Sadhu Biswas. Mohitosh has been referred to Kolkata as he suffered bow injuries. Police are investigating the two incidents.