The immigration official and the driver of Samdrup Jongkhar district administration who were kidnapped by the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT) after their vehicle was burnt on December 20 were released three days later, according to the Samdrup Jongkhar police.

Sonam Dorji, the immigration officer, and Tandin Dorji, the driver, were returning from Phuentsholing where they had gone to take delivery of a new Toyota Hilux for the dzongkhag when they were kidnapped. Sonam Dorji told the Samdrup Jongkhar police that when they reached the Kushikotra forest gate on Highway 31 in Assam, the uniformed gatekeeper closed the gate forcing their vehicle to stop. Five armed men surrounded the vehicle and took it away from the highway on a rough road to a place called Tinalia. They were kept in a school building during the day and moved around to different houses during the three nights of their captivity.

Sonam Dorji was given a set of written questions which he was made to answer as dictated by the leader of the BLT group. He was also video-taped while being forced to make specific responses to the questions. Before he was released, Sonam Dorji was instructed by the BLT leader to inform the royal government that the reason for the violent acts carried out by the BLT against Bhutanese nationals was to convey a message that Bhutan must not give shelter to the ULFA and the NDFB militants. If the royal government did not take appropriate action against the militants inside Bhutan within one month similar violent acts would again be carried out against Bhutan.

The Royal Bhutan Police told that on investigation it was found that the leader of the BLT group who had kidnapped Sonam Dorji and Tandin Dorji was the BLT's district chairman of Bongaigaon in Assam.

The acts of violence against the Bhutanese nationals over two days last week included burning of three vehicles, attacks on two buses which have left three killed and 19 injured, and the cold blooded murder of nine Bhutanese and a non-national traveling in a truck from highway 31 to Nganglam. On the night of December 21 a group of Bhutanese trading in soybean were also attacked at their camp in Bangmari, Assam. Their huts were torched and one man was shot and killed while another was seriously injured.

The Indian government has promised a full investigation into these gruesome incidents and assured us that they would do their best to bring all those responsible for the crimes to book. The Indian government of India has given its assurance to provide escorts for Bhutanese vehicles which are being coordinated to travel in convoys.

The Royal Bhutan Government has conveyed its deep concern to the Government of India over the 'unprovoked attacks' on the Bhutanese people and vehicles passing through Assam and requested that action should be taken against the persons involved in the attacks.

The Government of Bhutan has also held the Bodo Liberation Tiger (BLT) responsible for the attacks. In a release issued today, the Royal Bhutanese Embassy, New Delhi, said that six Bhutanese vehicles were attacked by armed members of the BLT on December 20 and 21, leaving 14 persons killed and 19 injured. Two Bhutanese people are still missing. The release said that on December 20, a truck going to Samdrup Jonkhar with a load of cement from Gomtu was stopped by three armed men on the National Highway-31 near Gossaigaon and the truck was set on fire. The driver and his assistant reported the incident to the Gossaigaon police station. About 2 pm on the same day, two Bhutanese passenger buses coming from Samdrup Jonkar to Phuentsholing come under heavy fire near Gossaigaon on the National Highway-31. The driver of one of the vehicles and a passenger were killed on the spot, while, another succumbed to bullet injuries near Alipur hospital. In the second bus 18 passengers were seriously injured. In addition to these two incidents, a new Toyota Hilux vehicle belonging to the Samdrup Jonkhar district office was way-laid on the National Highway 31 and burnt down near the Dimakumari village. The district official, who had gone to take the delivery of the vehicle from Phuntsholing and the driver of the vehicle are still missing.

The Royal Bhutan Embassy release said that on December 21, a truck belonging to a businessman at the border town of Nganglam in Bhutan was stopped by the BLT ultras near their office at Rangapani. The owner of the truck reported the matter to the Bhutan police that two BLT members who came out of their office, which had a BLT flag flying over it, boarded the truck at Rongapani. About half a kilometre ahead, six more BLT men boarded the truck. As soon as they reached the forest area, they stopped the truck, extorted Nu 10,000 from the owner and released him and the driver. Ten people were kept as hostages, when the Nganglam police went to check on December 22, they found the bodies of all the 10 hostages. All of them were shot and their faces were deliberately mutilated. Of the 10 hostages, one was a shopkeeper from Yangmari in Bhutan, one was the drivers' assistant, one was a non national working at Nganglam, three were villagers, and four were Bhutanese students from Nganglam.

The release further said that on the night of December 21, a group of Bhutanese trading soya beans were attacked at Bangmari in Assam, in which one was killed and the other seriously wounded. The Royal Bhutan Embassy said that a few days back, the BLT threatened Indian traders camping at the border at Nganglam to buy oranges. The Bhutan police has definite information and proof that all these attacks were carried out by the BLT, the release added. Meanwhile, the BLT has denied their involvement in the attacks on Bhutanese people. The BLT publicity secretary Mainao Daimary told The Assam Tribune that the BLT was abiding by the cease-fire agreement.

The BLT Publicity Secretary said that the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) militants were involved on the attacks on Bhutanese people. He said that the NDFB attacked Bhutanese people after conflicts with Bhutanese police personnel. The BLT has also appealed to the NDFB to stop killing of innocent people and come forward for talks for a peaceful solution of the problems.

The bodies of the 10 Bhutanese persons shot dead by suspected NDFB ultras at Namlang and Daranga recently were handed over to Royal Bhutan Government authorities at Namlang border this afternoon after post mortem was done at Barpeta yesterday. Meanwhile Indian Army personnel are carrying out a joint combing operation along with police authorities in the affected areas.