Tinsukia police probe possible insurgency links in kidnapping of tea factory employee

Margherita, Oct 24: The Tinsukia police have indicated that an insurgency group may be involved in the recent abduction of a tea factory supervisor near the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border in Jagun.

On Thursday morning, Jagun Police received reports of an employee being kidnapped from the Himalaya Tea Company.

Upon arrival, law enforcement reviewed CCTV footage that showed armed abduction of supervisor Gautam Basumatary by a group of five to six masked men.

Superintendent of Police (SP) for Tinsukia, Gaurav Abhijit Dilip told The Assam Tribune that a search operation has been launched in both the border areas and Arunachal Pradesh to locate the abducted supervisor and apprehend the culprits.

“We have received intelligence about insurgency movements in the region over the past few days. However, since we cannot identify the abductors from the CCTV footage, we cannot definitively claim that an insurgency group is involved, nor can we rule out their involvement,” SP Dilip said.

In response to the alarming incident, Police personnel are collaborating with local authorities across the state line to facilitate the search.

In a precautionary measure, borders have been sealed to prevent the escape of the assailants.

This incident echoes a similar kidnapping in 2018, when another tea garden employee from Jagun, Dinanath Upadhaya, was abducted under comparable circumstances, leading to massive protests by locals.

At that time, the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I) claimed responsibility for Upadhaya's kidnapping and demanded a ransom of Rs 3 crore for his safe release.