BD girl bids tearful adieu to father at Benapole border

Dead body.

Benapole, Oct 02 — A Bangladeshi woman, unable to cross the border, got a final chance to see her father’s body at the zero line of the Sharsha frontier on Wednesday, thanks to the compassion of border guards from both countries.

Mitu Mondal, 38, who lives in Benapole after marriage, broke down in tears as she and her relatives saw the body of her father, Indian national Jobbar Mondal (75), who had died of old age at his home in Bashghata village under Bagda area in West Bengal on Tuesday.

The body was brought to the zero line near main pillar 25/6-S at Dhannakhola border, where Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) arranged a flag meeting at company commander level to allow the family their last viewing.

Lt Col Saifullah Siddiqui, commanding officer of BGB-49 Battalion, confirmed the arrangement, saying it was made following requests from both sides.

Witnesses said Mitu and her relatives wept uncontrollably while seeing the body, and even members of BGB and BSF were moved to tears. Later, the body was taken back to India for the last rites, while the Bangladeshi relatives returned home.

Mitu’s husband, Bablu Mondal of Porabari village in Benapole, said, “We had no passports or visas. After hearing about my father-in-law’s death, we were devastated. But BGB helped us see him for the last time. We are grateful to them.”

Both BGB and BSF officers from local camps were present during the process. - UNB