When, at a time section of bike lifter gangs rampantly smuggled stolen motorbikes towards Bangladesh due to inactiveness of security forces, on Friday a group youth from bordering Konaban area under Sepahijala district foiled a bike smuggling attempt and amid resistance, bike lifters escaped from the spot leaving their stolen motorbike.

Sources said that a Pulsar bike, intended to be smuggled into Bangladesh, was intercepted in the Konaban Choumhani Tea Garden area, while the smugglers managed to escape the scene. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon. The seized bike was recovered and taken to Madhupur police station .

There is widespread fear across Tripura due to increasing incidents of theft and in a disturbing trend, a section of the youth, allegedly driven by the need to fund drug addictions, has turned to theft as a means of livelihood. The state is witnessing frequent thefts from places as varied as temples, mosques, schools, and even court premises — posing a serious challenge to the police administration.

Criminals have been stealing vehicle tires from garages, donation boxes from temples, and even computers and educational supplies from schools. On Friday afternoon, amid active border surveillance, smugglers attempted to smuggle stolen bikes and scooters into Bangladesh. Some brave local residents tried to stop the smugglers near the Konaban TSR camp, but the culprits managed to flee.

Following this, BSF jawans and police from Madhupur station arrived at the spot. Locals allege that some members of the border security force are hand-in-glove with the smugglers. They question how smuggling can continue under the nose of the BSF if there is no internal collusion. The residents of the area have demanded immediate and strict intervention by the state administration for growing incidents of smuggling in their bordering village.

While villagers managed to capture the stolen Bajaj Pulsar motorbike before it was smuggled to Bangladesh, but they were unable to catch suspected bike lifters. The villagers also demanded constant alert of security forces to stop smuggling through their village.