1970s border skirmishes Several skirmishes occurred along the border during the 1970s, years after the victory of the Battles of Belonia Bulge by the
Mukti Bahini and allied
Indian troops. The
Belonia issue was almost settled in 1974 when
Indira Gandhi and
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman agreed to the general principle of watershed. It was decided that in all cases of river line boundaries the midstream would be regarded as the border. And that both sides would take steps to ensure that the rivers did not change their course but unfortunately, it was not settled. The joint boundaries commission was to meet in the first week of November to finalise the Belonia border within the framework of the Indira-Mujib agreement. Officials of the two countries held a flag meeting. and
Ziaur Rahman became the
President of Bangladesh in 1977, Indira Gandhi also lost the
1977 Indian general election in the same year. In October 1979,
Bangladesh said, it should be regarded as
no-man's-land and farmers on the Indian side should be refrained from harvesting in no-man's-land. The Indian side disagreed and Indian peasants began harvesting the paddy they had sown.
Bangladesh Rifles and
Indian Border Security Forces exchanged fire near the
Comilla-
Tripura border throughout the entire month of November to December 1979. The shooting appeared to have become a habit with the soldiers on both sides. A joint survey team of India and Bangladesh visited the area and watched bullets flying across the disputed land for 90 minutes. Skirmishes near and in Belonia also occurred in 1999, where six civilians including one BSF Jawan were injured. The 67.31-acre land at Muhurichar has remained a disputed area since 1974 with both India and Bangladesh claiming the cultivable tract as their own territory. Of it, 44.87 acre falls in the Indian territory, while the rest is in Bangladesh's control. In total, there were eight skirmishes from 1979 to 1999 in Muhuri Char. BGB and BSF clashed for a total of 58 days in 20 years.
Smuggling The border is used as a route for smuggling livestock, food items, medicines, and drugs from India to Bangladesh. Moreover, illegal immigrants from Bangladesh cross the border to India. Because of a large number of illegal immigrants crossing from Bangladesh into India, a controversial shoot-on-sight policy has been enforced by the Indian border patrols. This policy was initiated with reports of violence between the illegal migrants and Indian soldiers. The border has also witnessed occasional skirmishes between the Indian
Border Security Force (BSF) and the
Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB), most notably
in 2001.
Fence construction In July 2009,
Channel 4 News reported that hundreds of Indians and
Bangladeshis were killed by the BSF along the Indo-Bangladeshi border fence during its construction. The BSF state that the fence's main purpose is to check illegal immigration and to prevent
cross-border terrorism. In 2010,
Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued an 81-page report which documented a number abuses committed by the BSF. The report was compiled from the interviews of abuse victims, witnesses, members of the BSF, and its Bangladeshi counterpart, the BGB. The report stated that over 900 Bangladeshi citizens were killed during the first decade of the 21st century, many of whom crossed the border for cattle rustling or other smuggling activities. However, the report also noted that some were killed due to "indiscriminate firing from across the border". The HRW called for a joint independent investigation to be conducted by both governments.
Alleged BSF incursions , on the Bangladesh–India border at Jointa Hill Resort, Tamabil,
Sylhet The Bangladeshi government has often accused the BSF of incursions into Bangladeshi territory, and indiscriminate shooting of civilians along the India–Bangladesh border. In a news conference in August 2008, Indian BSF officials admitted that they killed 59 illegals (34 Bangladeshis, 21 Indians, 4 unidentified) who were trying to cross the border during the prior six months. Bangladeshi media accused the BSF of abducting 5 Bangladeshi children, aged between 8 and 15, from the
Haripur Upazila in
Thakurgaon District of Bangladesh, in 2010. The children were setting fishing nets near the border. In 2010, Human Rights Watch accused the Border Security Force of the indiscriminate killings. On 7 January 2011, BSF forces killed 15-year-old
Felani Khatun after she became tangled while climbing the border fence during a return trip to Bangladesh. Her body was left hanging from the fence where it was photographed, drawing widespread outrage. In 2019, Bangladesh border guards shot at BSF personnel. They claimed self defence. One BSF officer was killed. ==Border length by Indian states==