Subject: Bangladesh-India enclaves
Date: Jan 30, 2001 @ 22:32
Author: Arif Samad (Arif Samad <fHoiberg@...>)
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I was looking at the Bangladeshi maps I have and it
seems that I may have actually taken a Rickshaw over
an Indian enclave about thirteen years ago before I
got interested in boundaries. The maps seem to say
so, but there were no Indian presence, so I don't
know. I do remember clearly of going on a road that
bordered the main boundary and daying hello to farmers
across the boundary. There was no Indian presence
there either.
Anyway, I thought this IBRU article was funny, so

STORM OVER CROSS BORDER LOVE

The border between Bangladesh and India is at the
centre of an unusual love story. A bangladeshi Muslim
youth has taken refuge in one of the many Bangladeshi
enclaves that juts into India, with a Hundu woman
believed to be his fiancee. But the woman's family and
friends in India disapprove of the relationship and
have demanded that she return home. Thousands of
people have surrounded the enclave, Mashaldanga, which
is only accessible to Bangladeshis who have permission
from the Indian authorities.
Love affairs between Hindus and Muslims in this area
of South Asia are often highly controversial, and can
provike largescale protests. This is why thousands of
people have besieged Mashaldanga, which adjoins the
Indian state of West Bengal, to demand that she return
home. The enclave is surrounded on four sides by India
and is only populated by a few thousand people.
Bangladeshi officials say they are in the dark about
the situation inside the enclave, because Indian
border guards and police have refused to allow them to
communicate with its inhabitants. The few residents
who have managed to reach Bangladeshi mainland
reported shortages of food and other essentials. It
has been reported that the runaway couple Mozammel Huq
Mandol and Sheema Rani Sarker, are now in hiding.
Skirmishes between India and Bangladesh along their
joint border are not uncommon. In some cases the
border is not clearly defined, and smuggling, ilegal
immigration and cattle theft all take place on a
regular basis. Officials in Dhaka say that they are
negotiating with the Indian authorities to resolve the
stand-off. But they say their requests for a meeting
with Indian border guards on the issue has not been
accepted.
BBC NEWS ONLINE, 23/5/00

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