Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Mizoram: 1 abductee released, another still under captivity

Police claimed that no ransom was paid for the release

Aizawl, Feb 11 :  Mohammad Buizul Islam, one of the two persons abducted by NLFT and Bru Democratic Front of Mizoram (BDFM) militants on February 2, reunited with his family today after being released from captivity.
Mamit Superintendent of Police C Lalnunmawia said Islam, who works as a driver with the Border Road Task Force (BRTF), was released by his abductors at a place near the border yesterday.
Hokum Singh, an overseer working with the BRTF, was still held hostage inside Bangladesh jungle, he said.
The abductors had first demanded Rs 15 lakh as ransom, but reduced it to Rs five lakh and ten ladies wrist watches, the police officer said.
They are demanding the same for the release of Hokum Singh, who belongs to Haryana.
The SP claimed that no ransom was paid for Islam's release.
Nine persons armed with sophisticated weapons and dressed in camouflage abducted the two persons from a place near Mizoram-Bangladesh border Chikha Anti Poaching Camp on February 2.
The abductors took their hostages and escaped to their camps inside Bangladesh even as the state police launched massive combing operation.
There had been ten incidents of abduction in Mizoram since 2011 till date, and that except for a single case of kidnapping at Mizoram-Assam border Kolasib district, all the abductions occurred in the Mizoram-Bangladesh-Tripura border Mamit district. A total number of 38 people had been kidnapped.
Majority of the abductions were done by Bru Democratic Front of Mizoram (BDFM) and National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) combine.
The maximum incidents of abduction occurred during 2014-2015 when 15 people were abducted in three incidents.