Three killed, two injured in BSF firing in Tripura border

Three tribal people including a woman have been killed when Indian border guards opened fire in bordering northeastern Tripura state, police have said.

Two others who were injured in the firing at Chitabari, around 200 km south from Tripura capital Agartala, were admitted in Subroom hospital on Friday.

Local villagers alleged BSF tried to drag a tribal woman working in a rubber plantation. Hearing her screaming, locals gathered there and tried to 'capture' BSF men when one of them opened indiscriminate fire upon the agitated locals.

Three of them died on the spot. They all are Indian nationals.

Meanwhile, a BSF official said that after seeing a group of cattle smugglers trying to take cows through an unfenced area BSF, troopers challenged them came under attack by the ‘smugglers’ armed with machetes. Hence, BSF had to open fire in self-defence.

K Srijesh, IG Law and Order who is on the way to the spot said over the phone, "Three persons including a woman were killed and two others injured in the firing of 31 battalions of BSF. The place of incident is close to the border with Bangladesh. Police are investigating the incident."

The bodies of the deceased have been kept in the morgue at Subroom hospital for post-mortem.

India shares extended 4096 km border with Bangladesh of which Tripura share is 857 km.