A man was shot dead, allegedly during an attack and counterattack between a group of smugglers and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in Sylhet's Jaintiapur upazila this morning.

The deceased was identified as Almas Uddin, 30, of Nayakhel Purbo village under Charikata union.

The incident took place around 10:00 am today, near the Balidara Kandirmukh Mosque on the Chatul-Lalakhal road.

Abul Bashar Md Badruzzaman, officer-in-charge of Jaintiapur Police Station, said, "The youth was shot dead during a gunfight between BGB and smugglers. However, whose bullet hit him is yet to be confirmed. We have completed the preliminary investigation in the presence of the UNO and are looking into the matter."

Meanwhile, Lt Col Zubayer Anwar, commanding officer of BGB Zakiganj Battalion, in a press note, said a group of smugglers carrying betel nuts from India was chased by a patrol team near the Suraighat Border Outpost (BOP)

The press note said that the smugglers at one point attacked the BGB unit, and in self-defence, the BGB personnel opened 4-5 rounds of fire.

A BGB member was injured in the attack and is undergoing treatment, he added, but did not mention the death of the youth in the press release.

Contacted repeatedly for comments on the youth's death went in vain as the commanding officer did not respond.