Violence along border as Bhutanese refugees stopped from entering India

KOLKATA, MAY 29 : Around 30 security personnel were injured in a clash with refugees who tried to cross over to Bhutan from their camps in Nepal through Indian territory. Security forces fired over 40 rounds to disperse the Bhutanese refugees, injuring many of them.

The Bhutanese refugees of Nepalese origin have been living at seven UNHCR sponsored camps in Eastern Nepal for the past 17 years. Last evening, thousands of them tried to enter India to go to Bhutan and exercise their franchise in the mock elections there. Incidentally, the mock elections in Bhutan concluded on Monday.

However, they were stopped at Panitanki, some 35 km from Siliguri, by the police and jawans of the Sashastra Seema Bal, who guard the open Indo-Nepal border.

As the refugees, under the banners of the People’s Forum for Human Rights and National Forum for Democracy in Bhutan, reached the zero point on Mechi Bridge the Indian security forces tried to stop them. The police burst teargas shells and then resorted to a cane-charge. “The refugees were undeterred and marched forward. They also pelted the police and SSB jawans with stones,” said IG North Bengal MKS Nalua. Finding no alternative the police fired about 40 rounds, mostly in the air, to scare away the refugees.

GP Kaphle, a spokesman for the refugees, flayed the role of Indian security personnel and said: “This is surprising. Despite being a democratic nation, India is restricting our movement to Bhutan to take part in the elections. We have no other way to go to Bhutan from Nepal.”

IG Nalua said at least 30 security personnel were injured. The other side said a number of refugees had sustained bullet injuries and four of them have been hospitalised.

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