After Quippo employee Gogoi’s release, anxiety over Ram Kumar’s whereabout

JAIRAMPUR: The United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) today released Quippo Oil and Gas Infrastructure Ltd engineer Pranab Kr Gogoi. However, his fellow worker Ram Kumar, who was also abducted with him, remained untraced till the evening although media reports said both have been released.

Gogoi was rescued by Changlang district police of Arunachal Pradesh and has been sent for medical treatment.

On his arrival at Jairampur Police Station here, Gogoi said the two were kept together till both were separated on March 4 promising them that they would be released through different routes. “After that I lost contact with him. I thought he has already been released. I’ve come to know only now that he has not been released yet,” Gogoi told newspersons.

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Neither has the ULFA (I) issued any media communiqué about their release today.

About his stay in captivity, Gogoi said he was extremely fatigued because they had to walk long distances through hilly terrains. “We were kept always on the move. We had to shift from one place to another every two days. We were fed well, but did not get time to sleep. Most of the time we are asked to wake up and move away from the hideout walking long ways at night. Since we’re not used to walking on hills, we’re extremely fatigued,” he said.

Asked if they were ill behaved in captivity, Gogoi said there was nothing as such. He also said that the two were provided new clothes before being separated for release.

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The ULFA (I) agreed to release the two after interlocutor Kaushik Phukan reportedly brokered a ransom deal between Quippo and the armed outfit. The two were abducted from an oilfield in Arunachal Pradesh on December 21 last year.

Expressing gratitude to the ULFA (I) for his safe release, Gogoi family also appealed to the rebel outfit to release Ram Kumar at the earliest.

The family also thanked the Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments for their cooperation in securing Gogoi's release.