TURA: Two petty traders from neighbouring Assam visiting a weekly market in Kherapara village of West Garo Hills have reportedly been kidnapped by armed men on Wednesday morning.
The two petty traders, hailing from Mancachar area of Dhubri disrict, were allegedly coming in a four wheeler along with several other traders to Kherapara for the weekly market when four persons armed with small arms in two motorbikes signalled them to halt at around 6 AM.
They reportedly pulled out two Bengali speaking petty traders and drove off with them in the two wheelers towards an undisclosed location and their whereabouts remain unknown.
The identity of the abductors remain unknown and police sources reveal that it could be the handiwork of either militants or petty criminals.
The Tura to Dalu road, beginning at Darengre all the way to Machangpani, has witnessed several cases of abductions by criminal gangs and Garo militant outfits in the past.
One of the most recent high profile cases was the attack on a travelling police constable Avijit Mazumdar and his friend Saumendu Chakraborty in July, last year.
A gang of criminals led by one William Marak under the guise of militants made an attempt to kidnap the police constable and his student friend. The constable was shot and left for dead after he tried to fight off the kidnappers while his friend was taken away.
The constable survived the ordeal and a sustained police operation forced the kidnappers to release the other victim in haste.
Police later arrested the kingpin of the group, identified as William Marak, from South India after he escaped from a police lock up in Mendipather, North Garo Hills, sometime last year.
