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| Afghanistan/South Asia | |
| Arms smuggled in from clandestine factories | |
| 2005-04-20 | |
| Kushtia: Firearms produced at clandestine factories operated by criminals across Kushtia border are being smuggled into Bangladesh.( The Daily Star ) There are at least four such factories in Nasirpara and Kacharipara villages in Zalanagi thana in Murshidabad district. The two villages are within three kilometres of the border in India, sources said. Some well organised gangs who operate in border areas in the two countries are engaged in the arms smuggling. On Monday, BDR caught an Indian national -- Asmot Ali at Fulbari border point in Damurhuda upazila in Chuadanga and recovered a pistol from him. He identified himself as son of one Khoda Box of Malyia village in Chapra thana in Nadia district. He told BDR that such pistols and other common and cheaper firearms are produced in those clandestine factories and smuggle those into Bangladesh, BDR officials told this correspondent. Such arms carriers were nabbed earlier also while trying to enter Bangladesh through different border points in Kushtia, Meherpur and Chuadanga districts, BDR sources said. They said they know presence of such clandestine factories close to the border in India and had raised the issue at BDR-BSF flag meetings. The last such meeting was held in Chuadanga on April 13. BSF officials at the meeting said they check the border and nab criminals, at times with firearms, according to the BDR sources. Murshidabad district in India and Kushtia in Bangladesh are divided by Mathabhanga river. It was gathered from different sources that several gangs are active at several points in the border. Prominent among them are Foisal-Fahmid Bahini of Jamalpur in Bangladesh and Lalchad Bahini of Philipnagar in India. In Bangladesh, these are sheltered by some local Union Parishad leaders and ruling party men, sources said. The arms smugglers mostly use Jamalpur, Chilmari, Ramkrishnapur, Bilgathua and Bhagjote points. Of these, the smugglers prefer Jamalpur point the most, the sources said. BDR personnel recently arrested two smugglers at this point and seized several firearms, they said. The arms which are being smuggled into Bangladesh include pistol, pipe gun, shutter gun, revolver eight-shooter gun and swan-off rifle. Of these, pipe gun, shutter gun, some types of pistols like Moyuree and some other light firearms are produced in these factories. These firearms are popular among criminals because of cheap rate. Foreign made firearms are also smuggled through these points. A shutter gun and a pipe gun is sold at between Tk 1000 and Tk 5000 in Bangladesh.
An official source said that most of the 1,939 illegal firearms surrendered by criminals in Khulna division in 1999 in response to the then Awami League government's general amnesty were made in India. | |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #2 I remember reading many years back that the Afgans were hand making AK 47s that were fully as good as the factory turn-outs. Since this was in the mid 80s, why not continue the tradition? |
| Posted by: Threque Uloluns4886 2005-04-20 11:46:50 PM |
| #1 Change of plans abu, fetch my swan rifle. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-04-20 8:59:58 AM |