Indian border forces help 20 living on Bangladesh 'zero line' to cast their vote in Tripura polls

India's Border Security Force (BSF) personnel helped as many as 20 voters living along the "zero line" on the Bangladesh border outside the barbed wire fencing in Agartala cross the fence and cast ballots in Tripura assembly polls on Thursday (17 February).

As the border areas along Tripura have "no-man's land" at many points, several hundred families live outside the fence but in Indian territory along the frontier. These pockets have some gates, operated by BSF guards. These Indian villagers seek the guards' permission whenever they go deep inside Indian territory or to another spot, reports the Times of India.

Additional BSF personnel were deployed at the gates during the polls when they were opened at 6am for voters beyond the fence, following instructions from the Election Commission of India. This included the gate in Agartala's Jaipur area through which the 20 people voted in Ramnagar constituency of the city.

"About 300 fenced-out voters are registered under various constituencies of South Tripura, Sepahijala, West Tripura, Unakoti and North Tripura districts. We listed their locations and entry points and shared them with the BSF to ensure that no one was deprived of their voting rights," said Chief Electoral Officer Kiran Gitte.

A BSF official said the voters outside the fence were let in after registering their names.