Rajani Shah, wife of BSF jawan Purnam Sahu who was detained by Pakistan Rangers after inadvertently crossing the international border.
| Photo Credit: PTI

The wife of BSF constable, Purnam Kumar Sahu, who is being held by Pakistani forces, has sought a meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. She is calling on the CM to intervene and secure her husband’s release.

The BSF jawan who hails from Rishra in West Bengal, inadvertently crossed the international border on April 23 and was taken into custody by the Pakistan Rangers. His wife, Rajni Sahu, earlier visited Ferojpur, where he was posted and met senior BSF officials.

“I have sought a brief meeting with Mamata Banerjee. She is the Chief Minister, so her intervention will help in expediting the matter,” Mrs. Sahu told a Bengali news channel.

Mrs. Sahu had earlier expressed the hope that her husband could be brought back through a swap for a Pakistani Ranger who was apprehended by Indian forces in Rajasthan on May 3.

Possible swap

Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee has also taken up the issue and spoken to the Director General of the BSF. Mr. Banerjee said that after the cease fire on Saturday, he reached out to the BSF DG again.

“I called up the DG last evening to ensure that the matter is now pursued seriously. The situation is improving, and this is the right time to push for his release,” the MP said.

‘Harmless’ drone

The BSF stationed on the South Bengal frontier on Sunday (May 11, 2025) downplayed concerns over a drone found in Murshidabad, describing it as a harmless photography device with no payload capacity.

“The drone recovered in Murshidabad is similar to the ones commonly used by our photographers to cover any function or event. It has been recovered deep inside Indian territory (more than 2000 m) in an Indian village,” a statement by the BSF said.

The BSF added that the drone only had a range of 400-500 m, a flying time of 15-20 mins depending on the battery, an inbuilt 4k camera, and no load carrying capacity.