A report published in a national daily said a transnational syndicate has been smuggling firearms into Bangladesh from India and Myanmar targeting criminal groups who would use those in gangsterism or polls related violence and also in Rohingya camps. The syndicate is now reportedly using ethnic groups in the border areas who hold national identity cards of both Bangladesh and India to freely move to carry the weapons inside the country. Unauthorised firearms are now flooding the country and we would ask the law enforcing agencies to keep strict watch on their movement and destroy the smugglers’ network. The recent arrest and interrogation of four people led to disclosure of the involvement of one authorised arms dealer in smuggling of arms while two such dealers were helping the supply chain. Yet another disclosure said an arms rules enforcement team arrested around a dozen of authorised arms dealers and recovered over 200 illegal arms during the past two years.
As it appears, the use of firearms by criminals in the underworld is adding growing threats to public life. Particularly such weapons are playing a critical role in polls related violence and killing opponents vying for supremacy in local or national politics. During the ongoing UP election over 92 persons were killed showing the reckless use of firearms. Both goons and party leaders buy such weapons before elections to kill or intimidate opponents. The report said the syndicate mainly used Shibganj of Chapainawabganj and Benapole of Jashore to smuggle arms from India. They have also invented new routes through Borkol of Rangamati and Tamabil of Sylhet district. Most of the arms are made in Bihar and then sent to Tripura to reach Bangladesh. Some of the arms were made in Myanmar as well and smuggled into Rangamati from Maungdaw of Myanmar.
The government will not appreciate that obtaining arms is easy and it is safe to rely on arms instead of votes to govern the country. We can condemn smuggling of arms but we shall not be listened to who are politically motivated. As an example we can cite here Syria has been shattered by armed conflicts. The opposition is getting arms support from outside while the country is ruined. In Myanmar the opposition is securing arms knowing the army rule will not end without armed struggle.
