03-West Bengal Report.pdf - People's watch

Satyen’s family members had to sell land to collect money for his treatment; now they are facing
tremendous financial problems.
Satyen Mondal had to discontinue his studies.
Witnesses Bapan and Manojit Mondal have stated that one BSF officer snatched a sickle from
one of the villagers after the shooting and inflicted injuries on himself to show that he was attacked
by the victims and thus to justify having fired on Satyen and Basudeb Mondal. The BSF officer
who shot Satyen Mondal approached Nemai Mondal and demanded Rs. 850 as a “treatment
cost” for the injured officer, even though free treatment is available for BSF personnel from the
government.
West Bengal
FF Code :W.B./Mon (Gopen Chandra Sharma)
/Murshidabad/
Apr-02/04/2007/ SL. No.-45
Victim(s) :1) Asif Iqbal; 2) Sahin Sk.
Perpetrator(s) :Unnamed BSF personnel, 140
Battalion, posted at Kaharpara BOP
Location :4km inside the Indian territory
from the IBP
Date of incident :01/04/2007
85
Case Detail:
Victim Asif Iqbal, age about 13, and victim Sahin Seikh, age about 15, were students at Katlamatri
High School. Both were from marginalized sections. They paid for their education by shepherding
cattle.
Economic hardship in their area led the victims to involve themselves in cross-border smuggling.
Such smuggling involves the police, the BSF, and
political leaders.
On 1 April 2007, Asif Iqbal and Sahin Sk. were told to
smuggle two cows from India into Bangladesh for Rs.
200. The person who instructed them bribed the
posted BSF personnel with Rs. 5000.
Asif Iqbal and Sahin Sk. were approaching the border
with the cattle when the BSF Commandant saw them
Annual Report on Torture
2007