Security Challenges to India-Bangladesh Relations

Dr. Mansi MehrotraAssociate Fellow

Centre for Land Warfare Studies (2009)

Framework

• Terrorism• Illegal Immigration• Border Security and Border Management• Recommendations

Potential Transnational Threats from Bangladesh

• Trans-border Terrorism– Religious extremism– Attacks on ethnic minorities

• Global Crimes– Drugs and arms trafficking– Smuggling of Contraband– Human Trafficking

• Illegal Immigration– Environmental Degradation– Food Security

Bangladesh: The New Hub of International Terrorism

Political Radicalisation

• Zia-ur-Rehman (1977-1981)•Hussain Mohammad Ershad (1982-1990)•Begum Khalida Zia

Jamaat-e-Islami BangladeshIslamic Oikko Joti

• Sheikh Hassina Wajed

Causes for the Politicisation of Islam

• To counterweight Awami League’s secular ideology

• Lack of mature political leadership• Politics of expediency of secular parties• Vague socialist political policies• Ineffective resistance of civil society

Rise of Islamic Extremism in Bangladesh• Internal Factors–Unstable social and economic setup–Absence of democratic polity– Easy money laundering– Favorable socio-political environment–Coercion as an acceptable mode of governance• Ineffective governance• Ineffective police force

–Criminalisation of politics

–Absence of state institutions in certain geographical areas, particularly at the local level–Presence of Islamist in • government structure, • educational institutions, • judiciary, •mass media, • armed forces

• External Factors–9/11 and US led war on terror– India-Bangladesh relations–Cross-border cooperation among the

militant groups of Myanmar, north-east India and Bangladesh– Easy availability of weapons–Proxy war by Pakistan

Main Islamist Groups in Bangladesh

• 20 militant groups–Main groups• Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami- Bangladesh• Islamic Chhatra Shibir• Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh• Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen

• 48 training centres

International Links

• Pakistan• Afghanistan• China• Southeast Asia

Financial Sources• Saudi Arabia• Jeddah• Qatar• Kuwait• United Arab Emirates• Pakistan• Zakat• Welfare and financial organisations• Investment in institutions and enterprises

• Institutionalised extortions• Regular contributions by its members and

associations• Profit from sales of proceeds of its literature• Non Government Organisations• Drugs and arms smuggling– Smuggling of contraband

Madrassas as the Breeding Ground for Terrorists

• Estimated madrassas= 64,000• Types of madrassas–Aliya –Deoband

• 7,122 registered madrassas • The clerics mainly belong to IOJ• “Bangladeshi Taliban” are students of these

madrassas.• Madrassas also used as training camps

Sanctuary for Indian Terrorists / Insurgent Groups

• 2003 BSF listed 79 militant training camps• 2005, Ministry of External Affairs prepared a list of

172 Indian insurgent groups• The links of the insurgent groups fall under three

categories– Islamic terrorist groups operating in Jammu and

Kashmir– Indian insurgent groups, including Islamic groups,

operating in the north-east–other umbrella organisations

The camps of the insurgent groups are located in

–Dhaka–Chittagong Hill Tract–Sylhet–Mymensingh –Sunamganj–Rangmali–Khegrachari–Bandarban

Bangladesh Government Efforts to Eradicate Terrorism

• Elite counterterrorist Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)- At present its manpower strength is 12

battalions.

• Proposal for formation of “South Asian Anti-Terrorism Task force”

Recommendations• Investigating and checking any links with the local

administration, military and politicians• Dismantling support infrastructure• Improving law and order situation• Identifying the sources of weapons of the militants• Commitment to modern education• Balanced social and economic development• Regional Cooperation – Joint Task Force• Bangladesh needs to rethink its relations with India • India and Bangladesh should show zero tolerance

towards any security threats

Illegal Immigration: Effects and Consequences

Types of Migration from Bangladesh

• Permanent immigrants• Floating population

North-East India • British “Inner Line”• Partition of Bengal 1905• Immigration (Expulsion from

Assam) Act 1950• Nehru-Liaquat Ali Khan

Agreement of 8 April 1950 • Assam Plan (1964)• Indira-Mujib Agreement

1972• Illegal Migrants

(Determination by Tribunal) Act 1983

• Assam Accord 1985

Illegal Bangladeshi ImmigrantsHome Ministry 1980

Between 1961-1971 - 9,67,000 entered Assam

2,14,000 displaced persons7,53,000 illicit immigrants

In 1999 it was disclosedInquiries against suspected immigrants 3,02,554

Screening Committee 2,96,564IMDT Tribunals 31,264

Persons declared illegal migrants by IMDT 9,625Number of illegal migrants expelled 1,461

Implications of Illegal-Immigration

• Insurgency• Demographic imbalance• Environmental degradation• Strain on resources• Bangladeshis asserting their political,

economic, social and educational rights• Rise of madrassas in the border areas

Bangladesh Claims• No Bangladeshi population in India• Lebensraum

Hindu Population in Bangladesh

• Decline in Hindu population in Bangladesh– 31% in 1947– 19% in 1961– 14% in 1974– 9% in 2002

• Ethnic persecution

Recommendations• Pro-active rather than a reactive policy towards the issue

of illegal immigrants• Develop legislative and administrative mechanisms that

stem the flow of irregular migration• Enforce Foreigners Act 1946• Adherence to human rights• Promote economic, educational and training programs• Develop bilateral economic relations• Cross border investment and transfer of technology• Control mechanism should to implemented• Regulation of work permits and identity cards• Effective border management

India-Bangladesh Border

• India Bangladesh Borders as per Ministry of Defence in 4351 Km.– It runs through 25 districts and five states,

visa-a-vie, •West Bengal (2217 Kms); • Assam (262 Kms) •Meghalaya (443 Kms)• Tripura (856 Kms)•Mizoram (318 Kms)

– The reverine border between India and Bangladesh is nearly 781 Kms.

Land Border: A Contentious Quandary Between India and Bangladesh

• Porous borders • Disputed Enclaves–125 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh–75 Bangladeshi enclaves in India• 65 enclaves in the West Bengal-Bangladeshi

border Out of them 35 are adverse possessions and 31 are reverse possessions

Enclaves

Adverse Possession• Indian land under Adverse possession of BD–2,853.50 acres• 2,062.23 acres West Bengal• 791.10 acres Assam and Meghalaya• .17 acres Tripura

• Bangladesh land under Adverse Possession of India–2,154.50 acres• 1,437.60 acres West Bengal• 7.00 acres Assam • 548 acres Meghalaya• 161.90 acres Tripura

Undemarcated Borders –Demarcation of 6.1 km of the border in

three sectors, namely: • Lathitilla-Dumabari (3 km in Assam

sector)• South Berubari (1.5 km in West Bengal

sector)•Muhuri river/Belonia sector (1.6 km in

Tripura sector)Bangladesh cites a document of 1937India relying on land records of 1914

Agreements on India’s Eastern Borders

• Nehru-Noon Agreement on India-East Pakistan (September 10, 1958)

• Indo-Bangladesh Agreement in 1974

India’s Security Concern from Bangladesh due to Porous Borders

• Trans-border terrorism and movement of insurgents• Illegal-immigration• Arms and narcotic smugglers– Smuggling of the contraband

• Establishment of madrassas, particularly in the border areas

• Human trafficking

Indian Border Management• Approximately 45 battalions of the BSF • 725 Border Observation Posts (BOPs) • The front wise average distance between BOPs– South Bengal- 5.2 kilometers–North Bengal 5.9 kilometers –Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur and Nagaland- 5.1

Km – Tripura, Cachar and Mizoram- 6.1 kilometers. the

inter-BOP distance is 5 to 7 kms.

Bangladesh Border Management

• Bangladesh Rifles

Border Fencing

Phase 1Name of the State

Length of the border (in

kms.)

Sanctioned length of

the fencing (in kms.)

Work completed (in kms.)

Expenditure incurred so far (Rs. in million)

West Bengal 2216.7 507 505 921.1Tripura 856 - - -Assam 262 152 149 192.9Meghalaya 443 198 198 283.9Mizoram 318 - - -

Indian side emphasises border fencing within and up to 150 yards of the international border

Phase II

Name of the State

Length of the

border(in kms.)

Sanctioned length of the

fencing(in kms.)

Estimated Expenditure

(Rs. in billion)

Expected year of

completion

West Bengal 2216.7 1021 4.40 2006-07Tripura 856 736 2.13 2006-07Assam 262 71.5 0.25 2006-07Meghalaya 443 201 0.58 2006-07Mizoram 318 400* 1.11 2006-07

• Bangladesh stresses the need to conform to the 1975 border guidelines

• Government of Tripura is also against fencing 200 km. on Bangladesh-Tripura border

Problems in Border Management

• Unresolved borders• Porous borders• Difficult terrain• Difficulty in identifying Bangladeshis• Administrative and technical difficulties in

deportation of Bangladeshi nationals• Criminal-administration-police nexus• There are more than 100 villages on the zero line

Villages on Zero line

• Lack of effectiveness of BSF • Unfriendly relations between the BSF and the

border population• Absence of coordination amongst military, para-

military and police forces• Poor intelligence• Lack of development on the border areas• Cheap labour• Lack of understanding amongst the decision-makers

about the border security issues

Dhaka demands vis-à-vis Delhi• Free movement of enclave people• Permitting exchange of enclave people• Speedy demarcation of the border line• Refrain from pushing Bengali speaking

nationals into Bangladesh• Adopting methods to check violation of the

border by Indian civilians and BSF members• Indian ratification of the 1974 Indira-Mujib

Agreement

Unresolved Maritime Boundaries

• India is yet to ratify its maritime boundary with Bangladesh

• According to the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea, Bangladesh must demarcate its sea boundaries by July 27, 2011, India by June 29, 2009 and Myanmar by May 21, 2009.

• Claim over New Moore islands

India’s Maritime Security• Drugs and arms smuggling• Sea bunkering• Counterfeits currency trafficking• Poaching of human trafficking• Illegal immigration• Maritime terrorism • Piracy • Smuggling of contraband • Humans trafficking • Illegal fishing • Maritime insurgency • Mercenary activities • Sabotage of maritime trade

Major obstacles for Maritime Security

• No firm policies and legal enforcement measures

• Over-abundance of organisations dealing with maritime border

• No well coordinated surveillance and security of the extended maritime zone

• Increase in domestic shipping tonnage

Maritime Security Scenario in India

• Indian Navy, • Coast Guard

Recommendations• Demarcate the undemarcated border, both land

and sea• Temporary permits for migrants on humanitarian

grounds.• Complete fencing of the border • Construction of jeepable roads close to the fence • Removal of settlements along the fencing and on

the zero line• Clear directions to be given to the BSF to stop

further infiltration

• BSF and Bangladesh border security personnel to work out strategies to deal with organised criminal activities

• Create awareness among the local population • A comprehensive and continuous process of the

proper mapping and movement of populations • Deny all benefits flowing from the government• Process of gradually disenfranchising the illegal

migrants• Legislative changes • Increase in pay and allowances benefits • Up-gradation of the Coast Guard • Establishment of specialised marine police

• Joint naval exercise • Navy and Coast Guard to set up Joint Operations

Rooms• Tracking and monitoring the movements of all ocean-

going ships • Larger navies should train the smaller navies to do

maritime counter-terrorism.• Monitoring of the coast up to a distance of 200 nautical

miles by the use of radars• Port security• Coordination and joint patrol

• Prevent unauthorised settlements along the borders

• Initiate special development programmes in the border region

• Promoting the concept of Village Voluntary Forces• Information networking

Thank You