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South-western districts of Jhenaidah, Jashore and Chuadanga along the Indian border have long been used as a major gold smuggling route as big consignments of gold are often seized from these areas while being smuggled to India.

But only the gold carriers including unemployed youth, van or rickshaw pullers and villagers are detained in connection with the incidents. These people are convicted when any trial takes place over these incidents. But the police are unable to find out the ringleaders.

Sources at Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and police stations in the related areas said at least 130 kilograms of gold, worth around Tk 1.28 billion (128 crore), were seized along the borders of the three districts in the last one year.

Gold smugglers maintain strategy very carefully and those who play the role of carriers usually do not know others, which is why they cannot provide adequate information and evidence; as a result, main criminals are nor traced all the time, said Benapole police officer-in-charge (OC) Sumon Bhakta.

The issue of gold smuggling came to fore again after the murder of Jhenaidah-4 lawmaker Anwarul Azim in Kolkata.

Several sources from law enforcers and others said a conflict over gold smuggling was behind the murder. Anwarul Azim’s friend Aktaruzzaman alias Shahin, identified as the mastermind behind the killing, is a ringleader of a gold smuggler gang. But there is no case against Aktaruzzaman.

BGB files cases over seizure of gold or any other goods while police investigate the cases. BGB’s Khalishpur 58 Battalion’s commander lieutenant commander Azizus Shahid thinks it is the responsibility of the police to identify the ringleaders of gold smuggling gangs through investigation.

However, Jashore police’s spokesperson and additional police superintendent (crime) Belal Hossain said that they book whoever is involved in smuggling.

He claimed that beside the ‘carriers’, others are also accused but one cannot be accused without any evidence.

BANGLADESH ROUTE: THREE DISTRICTS ARE MOSTLY USED

A lot of gold is smuggled into India every year, with Bangladesh being one of the major routes.

A special report in the Economic Times of India on 23 April 2023 said that the Department of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) of India seized a total of 833 kg of gold in the fiscal year 2021-22.

The report quoted the World Gold Council as saying that the country has an annual demand of 800,000 kg of gold. Of the amount, 80,000 to 90,000 kg of gold is smuggled annually.

BGB estimation states that around 261 kg of gold was seized from the border areas in 2023. Meanwhile, as per information collected by Prothom Alo from BGB and police sources reveals that 130 kg gold was recovered along the border of three districts last year.

The Economic Times report also mentioned that India has imposed 18.5 per cent of duty on gold. This encourages smuggling of this precious metal. Per kg smuggled gold costs 800,000 to 900,000 less than the market price in Indian rupee. The price of per kg gold was over six million INR at that time.

Sources from law enforcers feel gold is smuggled into Bangladesh through airports from the Middle East, Singapore and Malaysia and then sent to the Indian border. Gold is smuggled more to India using Bangladesh and Myanmar routes. Smugglers prefer these two countries due to lax security.

BGB estimation states that around 261 kg of gold was seized from the border areas in 2023. Meanwhile, as per information collected by Prothom Alo from BGB and police sources reveals that 130 kg gold was seized along the border in three districts last year. It can be noted that Chuadanga’s estimation was made between 16 January last year and 8 March this year.

271 Kilometers Border

India’s border with Jhenaidah, Jashore and Chuadanga districts stretches 271 kilometers. Law enforcers said gold is smuggled by various means such as concealing inside vehicles, inside abdomen or anal, by tying with the body or by keeping inside the sandals or insoles of shoes.

Chuadanga Battalion of 6 BGB and Maheshpur Battalion of 58 BGB look after the 113 km long border in Chuadanga. BGB and police sources said they recovered 64 kg 848 grams of gold in 30 drives in Darshana, Jibonnagar and Damurhuda borders between 16 January last year and 8 March this year.

BGB seized 38 kg gold from Jhenaidah’s Maheshpur border areas in 2023. The upazila has a 57 kilometer-long border with India.

The Jashore battalion (49 BGB) and the Khulna battalion (21 BGB) are in charge of border areas of Jashore’s Sharsha, Benapole and Chowgachha upazila. According to sources at the Jashore battalion, 27.8 kg of gold were seized from this area in 2023. The Jashore border is 101 kilometers long.

Lt Col HM Salauddin Chowdhury recently joined the BGB Maheshpur battalion (58 BGB) as commander. He said, “It cannot be said for certain that gold smuggling has been stopped entirely, but there has been no seizure of gold since I joined. The BGB has been carrying out the duty vigilantly.”

ONLY CARRIERS ARE DETAINED

An analysis of several incidents of smuggled gold seizures in these three bordering districts shows BGB and police detained the carriers, and ringleaders were supposed to be nabbed later following investigation, but it did not happen.

BGB detained Omar Faruk, 27, and Md Farhad Sarkar, 32, while they were smuggling 112 gold bars weighing 1.6 kg by a pickup van to India via the Benapole border of Jashore on 16 November 2022.  A case was filed with the Benapole port police station against three carriers under the Special Power Act. Police filed the charge sheet in the court after the investigation, which left out the ringleader of the smuggling.

Regarding this, Benapole police officer-in-charge (OC) Sumon Bhakta said gold smugglers maintain strategy very carefully and those who play the role of carriers usually do not know others, which is why they cannot provide adequate information and evidence; as a result, main criminals are nor traced all the time.

CARRIERS ALSO FACE PUNISHMENT

A review of 21 charge sheets from the cases filed between 2017 and 2023 over gold smuggling in the Chuadanga border shows that charges were pressed against the accused in 19 cases and the final report against unidentified people was filed with the court in the cases. There is no example of an investigation as to who is involved or on the sources of gold. The court, however, sentenced the accused to life in prison after the allegations were proven.

A review of information from six cases in which the court gave the verdict shows it is the carriers who face the punishment. BGB detained Shipon Rana, from Parkrishnapur village of Damurhuda upazila of Chuadanga, in possession of gold bars weighing 3.18 kg from neighbouring Jhajhadanga village on 14 April 2017. Damurhuda police station inspector (investigation) GM Imdadul Haque filed the charge sheet in the court against Shipon Rana on 31 October of that year. District and sessions judge Moham. Rabiul Islam of the Chuadnaga Special Tribunal-1 sentenced him to life in prison on 26 February 2020.

Police’s investigation could not trace the owners and suppliers of the gold. Chuadanga public prosecutor (PP) Md Belal Hossain raised the gold smuggling issue at the police-magistracy meeting recently. He said the sources of gold and its owners remain unclear in police investigation and he urged the people concerned to take the matter seriously.

THEY REMAIN BEHIND THE SCENE

Smuggling has been continuing via the border for a long time. A union parishad member from Maheshpur’s Baghadanga border said on condition of anonymity that videocassette player (VCP) and videocassette recorder (VCR) were taken to India in the 1980s and drug and sarees came in return. Afterwards, gold smuggling started. Many people from bordering villages play the role of carriers and are amassing huge wealth.

Wealth, luxury life and money laundering of gold smuggling ringleaders are coming to the limelight after the murder of lawmaker Anwarul Azim.

Wishing anonymity, a public representative of a local government body from Jhenaidah’s Maheshpur said that influential people are involved in gold smuggling. Even many public representatives made money from smuggling and they remain behind the scenes and are never brought to book.