A Bangladeshi national who spent several hours stranded in no-man’s land along the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya was handed over to his family on June 11 after authorities verified his identity, bringing an end to a tense standoff between the border forces of the two countries.
The incident unfolded in the Nandirchar sector near Mahendraganj in Meghalaya’s South West Garo Hills district, where personnel of the Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) disagreed over the nationality and identity of the individual. Videos purportedly showing the confrontation circulated widely on social media, although their authenticity could not be independently verified.
According to BSF officials, the man was identified as Sati Rajbanshi, a resident of Chalna village in Bangladesh’s Rajshahi district. He was allegedly intercepted while attempting to enter India without valid travel documents.
The situation escalated when BSF personnel sought to return him to Bangladesh, but BGB officials allegedly refused to accept him. The disagreement left Rajbanshi stranded in the border’s no-man’s land from Wednesday.
A commander-level flag meeting between the two border forces failed to resolve the issue initially, resulting in Rajbanshi remaining in the area throughout the night.
The deadlock ended on Thursday morning when Rajbanshi’s relatives arrived with documents confirming his identity. Following verification, he was handed over to his family.