Guwahati, Nov 6 (IANS): At least three Bangladeshi nationals who illegally crossed the international border and allegedly wanted to join a cattle smuggling gang, have been arrested in Assam's Cachar district, an official said on Monday.

They were first taken into custody on Sunday midnight by a group of Assam Police's Village Defence Force (VDF) from a residence close to the international border between India and Bangladesh.

An official of the VDF team claimed that the three persons crossed the border with the help of cattle smugglers.

The VDF team took three individuals to the nearby Katigorah police station in Cachar district, and they were arrested.

The police said that they will be shifted to Silchar central jail.

A senior police officer said the three arrested persons did not have a passport and visa, adding complaints have been filed against them under the Foreigners Act of 1946 and the Passports Act of 1967.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Ekbal Ali, Jamil Ahmed, and Abdul Basit Bacchu. They are all residents of Zakiganj subdivision in Bangladesh's Sylhet district.

According to VDF President in Katigorah, Sankar Deb, they conducted raids at many houses based on intelligence input and spotted the three Bangladeshi nationals.

"They disclosed that they were seeking for work when they encountered a group of cattle smugglers in Bangladesh, who then transported them to this location. They were meant to get involved in a cattle smuggling operation," Deb stated. Meanwhile, after the arrest, Abdul Basit Bacchu claimed that they came to India for the time, and they were sent "through a secret route".

He said: "We didn't know from where we entered India because it was dark at night. They told us to walk and we were asked to meet one person in Katigorah."

Cattle smuggling across the international border between India and Bangladesh has been a routine occurrence in various Assam districts, such as Cachar, Karimganj, Dhubri, and Goalpara.

Police opened fire on suspected traffickers in Karimganj earlier this year to put an end to their operations.

According to a senior Border Security Force (BSF) official, the BSF has seen an increase in these kinds of smuggling activities and has detained multiple Bangladeshi nationals who were in possession of smuggled cows and buffaloes.