Empty stalls run by Bhutia vendors beside the city police reserve on Wednesday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Dec. 17: Vendors of the Bhutia Market plying their wares next to the city police reserve in Paltan Bazar here, have been quietly evicted and relocated nearby. The eviction occurred a day after the Royal Bhutan Army launched armed operations to flush out Ulfa and National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) cadres from its territory.

The city police, who carried out the drive yesterday, contended that the shifting was necessary for free movement of traffic and ease congestion in the “high-security zone”.

Sources, however, indicated it was part of the new security measures to pre-empt any retaliatory attacks from the rebels either on the vendors or the police establishment.

That the police was not taking any chances became clear when city superintendent of police Hiren Chandra Nath yesterday said officers-in-charge and divisional SPs have been alerted to ensure the safety of Bhutanese nationals. “Their population is not much and are spread over the city. The only concentration of note is in the Paltan Bazar area. We have intensified patrolling in such areas,” he had said.

K.K. Nath, DSP of the police reserve, said 11 of the 15 vendors were asked to shift some 75 meters away to ease congestion and the exercise had nothing to do with the developments in the southern districts of Bhutan. “If you visit the area you will understand why the shifting was required. There is problem of parking. There is problem of free movement. All these factors were responsible for the shifting. In front of our eyes they are more secure. It has nothing to do with army operations in Bhutan,” he added, underplaying the timing of the move.

The vendors, who pay tax to the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) for using the space, said they were asked to leave because their temporary tarpaulin stalls were fire-prone and if a fire broke out it could pose a threat to the police reserve. The vendors deal in warm clothes, which are quite a rage because of their quality and reasonable rate. “Since it concerned the safety of the reserve we left yesterday. There is no problem,” one of them said while asserting that he was from Nepal and not Bhutan.

The GMC joint commissioner, when contacted, said he was not aware of any such action. “To my knowledge our men were not involved in the operation,” he added.

The Paltan Bazar police have also been keeping a close watch on the Bhutia market, which falls under its jurisdiction. “We are constantly in touch with the vendors there but have not revealed our purpose as it might scare them. So far everything is fine and it is business as usual for them,” an ASI of the police station said. The police’s alertness is understandable. Part of Kamrup district shares its border with Bhutan.

In mid-2001, over 20 Bhutanese citizens travelling through Assam were killed by suspected NDFB rebels in the wake of warnings by Thimphu to vacate its territory. Last year, the NDFB rebels killed 20 villagers, comprising Adivasis and minorities, in Datgiri in Kokrajhar district.