After Ulfa woes, Bhutan has KLO worry on hands

The issue came up for a lengthy debate in the Assembly last week with Home Minister Thinley Lyonpo Thinley Gyamtsho saying their presence posed a grave threat to Bhutan’s sovereignty.

‘‘The discovery of a third militant outfit, the KLO from West Bengal, made the issue of the presence of armed foreign militants more complicated,’’ Gyamtsho said on Thursday, Bhutanese paper Kuensel said.

He also informed the Assembly that while the ULFA had dismantled four camps following talks with the Bhutan government, it had set up a new camp at a mountain ridge on the Samdrupjongkar-Trashigang highway. With this the number of ULFA camps in Bhutan has now gone up to six.

The NDFB on the other hand has three major camps and four mobile ones, while the KLO has set up to camps close to those of the ULFA, Gyamtsho said. He was, however, not sure of the total number of cadres present in these camps.

Bhutan had only a few months ago imposed curbs on transportation of supplies and rations to militants’ camps.

Members also pointed a finger at Indian security personnel for failing to prevent the militants from crossing over. The representative from Punakha expressed concern over the KLO’s emergence. ‘‘The situation reminds us of the fate of Sikkim. If this trend continues, we should turn our attention towards the north,’’ he said indicating that Bhutan seek help from China.

‘‘Although the relationship between India and Bhutan is like that of two brothers, it must be kept in mind that even brothers have problems,’’ he said.