DHAKA/AKHAURA (India), 5 May 2005 — Director General of paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) Maj. Gen. Jahangir Alam Choudhury met with Deputy Inspector General of India’s Border Security Force (BSF) R.K. Chowdhury in Agartala yesterday. The two sides agreed to maintain peace on the recently-troubled frontier.

Choudhury told his Indian counterpart that an inquiry into the April 16 border skirmish found no evidence of any offense committed by the BDR.

Sources said the BDR chief went to the capital of the eastern Indian state of Tripura through Akhaura Immigration Check-post and exchanged greetings with the BSF official and other battalion commanders in what is seen as a peace mission.

The BDR chief stressed the need for better ties with India and hoped that the two countries would work to maintain their friendly relations.

“Both India and Bangladesh are good friendly neighbors and we shall remain friends in the future as well,” Choudhury said.

The BDR chief’s visit came a little more than a fortnight after Bangladeshi frontier guards launched several “unprovoked attacks” on BSF posts in Tripura and killed a senior officer.

BDR troopers opened intermittent gunfire on the BSF post at Akhaura, besides killing Assistant Commandant Jeevan Kumar and wounding two troopers in the adjoining post of Lankamura. India called Kumar’s killing “premeditated”.

“I would say the killing of a BSF commander was an isolated incident and should not be interpreted otherwise,” the BDR chief said.

“The media hyped up the incident and gave a different dimension to the whole issue,” Choudhury said.

India had demanded a probe into the incident by Bangladesh.

Choudhury said: “We are inquiring into the matter and so are our Indian counterparts.”

The BSF had also accused Bangladesh of violating Indian airspace and massing forces along the border.

“Right now there is no tension in the border and things are normal. We hope to take the friendly relations forward with more interaction between officers of the two sides,” Choudhury said.

Choudhury said his visit to the BSF post was part of confidence building measures between the two countries and would dispel doubts about heightened tension prevailing in the region.

The eastern Tripura shares an 856-km border with Bangladesh, a vast area being unfenced with only concrete pillars marking the frontier. — Additional input from IANS.