West Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari on Monday alleged that the police’s failure to cooperate with the Border Security Force (BSF) has enabled infiltration across the state's borders. He further criticised the state government for its "inaction" in acquiring land, which has allegedly stalled fencing efforts along the porous Indo-Bangladesh border.
“Of about 2,216.7 kilometres long border with Bangladesh in West Bengal, 1,647.446 kilometres have been fenced. Among the remaining 569.254 kilometres, 456.474 kilometres are land borders. However, land acquisition issues for 284.56 kilometres are still tied up in legal proceedings,” LoP Adhikari told the press at the BJP office in Kolkata’s Salt Lake on Monday.
He further added that the Centre was not a party to these cases, emphasising that the matter was entirely under the state's jurisdiction.
Through a PowerPoint presentation, Adhikari highlighted that district officials' inaction had delayed the disbursal of funds for over 778.575 acres of land, even though the state had approved its use for fencing projects in border areas.
LoP Adhikari also pointed out that the construction of BSF outposts and battalion headquarters in border regions are allegedly facing similar delays due to unresolved land acquisition issues.
As a result, West Bengal is increasingly becoming a safe transit corridor for terrorists and extremists, with the administration of Mamata Banerjee allegedly facilitating their movement, alleged the leader of the opposition.
“The stronger the network of law enforcement agencies in West Bengal, the better it is for us,” he said. “The state will not have to bear any expenses. All lands required will be purchased at the current market value by the central government.”
Adhikari then attacked the West Bengal Director General of Police (DGP) Rajeev Kumar for allegedly shifting the blame onto the BSF for border infiltration. The police official on Sunday claimed that despite “shortcomings” on the part of the central security force, the state police were handling the issue efficiently.
DGP Kumar, while holding a press meet along with West Bengal Police Additional Director General (ADG) (Law & Order) Jawed Shamim and Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma, also praised the state’s force for their joint operations with police from other states in nabbing infiltrators.
In a sharp critique of the state's top police officer, Adhikari said, “The honourable DGP who holds additional charge yesterday claimed that the BSF was responsible for infiltration in West Bengal. But Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has not given land at 17 places [for BSF outposts].”
The 54-year-old legislator from Nandigram then went on to assert that the police in West Bengal had failed to stop infiltration and that efforts by Assam and Tripura police were now exposing the gravity of the infiltration issue in the state.
It is to be noted that in this war of words, the BSF has not yet responded to comments made by DGP Kumar.
