The officer-in-charge of Pasighat police station, A.K. Singh, today said the trio — Teliana Jaho, Boilan Jaho and Hreluaia — were arrested from a rented house after some members of the Arunachal Law Students’ Union informed the police about their “suspicious activities”. The three youths, they said, had been collecting roots and herbs from nearby jungles for over a year.
“When questioned, they failed to produce any visa and were booked under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act and were remanded in police custody for seven days. We are trying to find out any possibility of their being linked to any militant group, specially Kachin Independent Army (KIA),” Singh said.
Another police source said the youths had initially identified themselves as botanists from Mizoram and had said they were associated with a research project at a folk medicine institute at Pasighat but after subsequent interrogation they revealed their Myanmarese nationality.
Members of the Arunachal Law Students’ Union, however, said the arrested youths were staying in the rented house of the sub inspector of Pasighat police station, O. Gao, for more than a year and were involved in smuggling of roots of herbal plants.
They added that the police knew about the matter, but had failed to act.
“The three youths could have got away had we not intervened,” T. Mingki, a member of the students’ union, said.