Nepal steps up security along southern border with India following Bangladesh unrest

Kathmandu: Nepal on Monday stepped up security at its border with India following ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, fearing a potential infiltration of citizens from the violence-hit country.

The Ministry of Home Affairs instructed security agencies to adopt high alertness along the border to prevent unauthorised entry through international border areas, police said.

According to the police, the Home Ministry directed the security personnel deployed for border security to take extra precautions to prevent such infiltration.

“All security personnel deployed in the border areas have been instructed through circulars to closely monitor and take measures against potential illegal entries and activities from third countries,” said a senior official.

They have been instructed to remain high on alert from Kakarbhitta in the East to Lumbini in the West, the official said.

In the past, groups of Rohingyas illegally entered Nepal via the Mechi Bridge and other entry points, finally reaching Kathmandu following a military takeover in Myanmar.

Bangladesh descended into chaos as Prime Minister Hasina surreptitiously resigned and fled the country in a military aircraft while the army stepped in to fill the power vacuum.

As the news of Hasina’s departure spread, hundreds broke into her residence, vandalising and looting the interiors, providing dramatic expression to the anti-government protests that have killed more than 300 people in a fortnight.