As many as three drivers employed at a quarry in Assam's Dima Hasao were on Saturday reportedly abducted in an ambush by a group of unidentified armed miscreants.
While two of the three kidnapped drivers operated backhoe loaders, the other was the driver of a dumper, all employed at the quarry. The shocking incident was reported from Joypur Aina Chara in Assam's Dima Hasao earlier today.
The gunmen fired a few rounds in the air after entering the quarry as the labourers were loading the mined stone onto trucks. This caused the situation to turn chaotic with labourers rushing to save their lives.
In the ongoing mayhem, the miscreants abducted the three drivers at gunpoint and fled from the scene. Witnesses mentioned seeing them take the hostages deep into the jungles.
Soon after the incident, the local police was informed and they rushed to the site. An investigation was initiated into the matter and a search operation was launched to locate the kidnappers.
However, the police have not been able to make any headway as the search for the miscreants and a bid to rescue to abducted drivers continues till the filing of this report.
The officials present at the scene informed that two of the drivers abducted by the miscreants were residents of nearby Udarbond, which falls in the Cachar district, while the third is a resident of Aina Chara area.
Meanwhile, the nature of the crime has turned the heads of the police towards militant organisations. Officials are primarily suspecting the involvement of any banned insurgent group in the kidnapping of the drivers, however, they are keeping all angles open.
Furthermore, sources said that the kidnapping of the drivers today comes amid a rise in similar incidents where armed groups have abducting employees at the quarry, which largely go unreported.
No militant organisation has come forward to claim responsibility for the incident. Further details are awaited.
