Dhaka, Sep 10 (V7N) – Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain announced on Tuesday that Bangladesh has adopted a "stronger" stance in its protests against recent border killings. He emphasized that the country has firmly condemned these incidents.

"We have intensified our protest language. This issue is extremely sensitive, and we are conveying our message clearly at every opportunity. We expect India to take note of our concerns," Adviser Hossain told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hossain reiterated Bangladesh's demand for an end to border killings, stating that such actions are detrimental to the bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and India. He stressed that these incidents bring no benefit and only negatively impact relations between the two countries.

Earlier, the Bangladesh government urged India to prevent such "heinous acts" and to conduct thorough investigations into all border killings. They have called for accountability and justice for the responsible parties.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally protested to the Indian government following the death of a 13-year-old Bangladeshi girl, Shwarna Das, who was killed by the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) on September 1 in Juri upazila of Moulvibazar district. The protest note submitted to the Indian High Commission in Dhaka strongly condemned the incident and expressed grave concern.

Bangladesh reminded India that such border killings are unwarranted and violate the Joint Indo-Bangladesh Guidelines for Border Authorities, 1975.

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Pranay Verma, met with newly appointed Foreign Secretary Jasim Uddin on Tuesday to discuss mutual interests.

On Monday, Adviser Hossain highlighted that border killings hinder the progress of Bangladesh-India relations. He noted the widespread negative impact within Bangladesh when such incidents occur.

In a separate incident, Indian BSF personnel were reported to have shot dead a 15-year-old Bangladeshi boy, Joyanta Kumar Singha, and injured his father and another individual along the Baliadangi border in Thakurgaon. The injured are receiving treatment at Rangpur Medical College Hospital, while the BSF took away the deceased's body.

Adviser Hossain described these border killings as unacceptable and reiterated that they contradict the narrative of the "golden chapter" in the relationship between the two countries.

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