Meghalaya Imposes two-month night curfew along Indo-Bangladesh border amid rising tensions

SHILLONG(Meghalaya): In view of the current situation in Bangladesh, night curfew under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) has been imposed in East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya. The curfew will be enforced within a 1 km radius from the Zero Line along the International Border.

According to the order issued by R.M. Kurbah, IAS, District Magistrate of East Khasi Hills, the night curfew will be in place daily from 8 PM to 6 AM and will remain in force for two months from the date of its issuance- May 8, 2025.

The curfew prohibits movement of people near the border with the intent to cross into Bangladesh or enter India illegally. It also restricts any unauthorized procession or unlawful assembly of five or more persons and bans the carrying of items that could be used as weapons, such as sticks, rods, and stones.

Additionally, the order aims to curb illegal and undesirable activities including the smuggling of cattle, contraband goods, betelnut, betel leaves, dry fish, bidis, cigarettes, and tea leaves in and around the Indo-Bangladesh border.

The order has been enforced immediately due to the urgency of the situation.

Meawnhile, following Operation Sindoor, a targeted strike mission to destroy terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pok in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, Bangladesh said it is observing the situation.

Expressing concern over the situation, the nation urged both countries to show restraint and called for “diplomatic endeavours” by both sides to ease tensions.

Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday, “The Government of Bangladesh is closely observing the evolving situation in India and Pakistan. Bangladesh expresses its deep concern over the situation and urges both countries to remain calm, show restraint, and refrain from taking any steps that could further aggravate the situation.”

“In the spirit of regional peace, prosperity and stability, Bangladesh remains hopeful that tensions will be defused through diplomatic endeavours, and that peace will ultimately prevail for the benefit of the peoples in the region,” it added.

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, the Indian Armed Forces launched a strike at the terror hideouts deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir under ‘Operation Sindoor’ on Wednesday morning. Wing Commander Vyomika Singh informed that a total of nine terror sites were targeted and successfully destroyed. She asserted that the locations were selected so that there was no damage to civilians and their infrastructure.

“Operation Sindoor was launched by the Indian Armed Forces to deliver justice to the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and their families. Nine terrorist camps were targeted and successfully destroyed… The locations were so selected to avoid damage to civilian infrastructures and loss of any civilian lives,” Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said.

Meanwhile, during the press briefing, Col Sofiya Qureshi presented the videos of the destruction of terror camps, including from the Muridke and where David Headley and Ajmal Kasab, perpetrators of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, received training.

Other than Muridke, Sarjal camp in Sialkot, Markaz Ahle Hadith, Barnala and Markaz Abbas, Kotli and Mehmoona Joya camp, Sialkot, were targeted in the strikes conducted by the Indian Army, Col Qureshi informed.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that the attack on Pahalgam was driven by an objective of undermining the return of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir.

“The attack in Pahalgam was marked with extreme barbarity, with the victims mostly killed with head shots at close range and in front of their family…the family members were deliberately traumatised through the manner of killing, accompanied by the exhortation that they should take back the message. The attack was clearly driven by the objective of undermining normalcy returning to Kashmir,” he said. (ANI)