Bhutan sent 10 individuals to Nepal after the US deported them for involvement in criminal activities. The Bhutanese government refused to accept them and instead redirected them to Nepal.

The individuals, initially arriving at Paro Airport in Thimphu via Delhi, were transported by Bhutanese authorities to the Phuentsholing-Jaigaon border, located 6.5 hours away from there. From the border point, Indian security forces escorted them for a 166-kilometre journey, ultimately leaving them at the Panitanki border point in eastern Nepal.

They entered Nepal discreetly at Panitanki on Friday night. Among them, three individuals were arrested by Nepal Police for illegal entry. Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, India has been unilaterally verifying the identity documents of travellers at the Kakarbhitta-Panitanki border, making movement more difficult than before. However, it was revealed that these Bhutanese nationals entered Nepal at night after bribing middlemen at the border.

Faced with difficulties entering through the main Mechi Bridge border point, the group was guided across the Mechi River via the Khori Bari crossing south of Pani Tanki by brokers. Each reportedly paid Rs10,000 for their entry. They arrived in Beldangi at 9pm on Friday, and police apprehended them on Saturday afternoon.

Ashish Subedi, Santosh Darji, and Roshan Tamang, who had secretly entered Nepal and reached the Beldangi refugee camp, were arrested by the police on Saturday afternoon and handed over to the Immigration Office in Kakarbhitta. Subedi had entered the camp directly to meet his father. The news of their arrival spread quickly, after which security personnel detained them, said Bhutanese rights activist Dil Bhutani.

Bhutani also said that immigration and security officers at Paro Airport had immediately instructed the deportees to leave Bhutan. They were then transported to the Jaigaon (India) border and released. Bhutanese authorities told them they were not citizens of Bhutan and advised them that leaving the country immediately would be in their favour. Following this, they were driven to the Phuentsholing-Jaigaon border.

The remaining seven of the ten deported individuals are believed to have illegally entered Nepal and are currently hiding in an undisclosed location, according to police estimates. Fearing arrest by Nepali authorities, they remain in hiding.

Suresh Acharya, the assistant chief district officer of Jhapa, said efforts are underway to send the Bhutanese nationals who entered illegally back to Bhutan. “They will be returned via the same route they came,” he said. “We will carry out that plan.”

After being expelled from Bhutan, Bhutanese refugees who had previously been resettled in the US under a resettlement programme were found to be involved in criminal activities. Consequently, the US authorities began deporting these individuals back to Bhutan. Preparations are underway to deport 40 such individuals, with 10 already sent back to Bhutan on Friday.

There is now debate regarding their final destination for deportation. The US deported them to Bhutan, but Bhutan, in turn, sent them to Nepal, leading to confusion over their ultimate fate. According to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), these individuals were apprehended based on old records linked to their criminal activities.

They had been arrested for their involvement in criminal activities since 2012, and more than 30 Bhutanese refugees from Pennsylvania are currently in ICE custody.

According to refugee rights activists, the deportation of these Bhutanese refugees has created a situation of uncertainty and fear. Bhutan has not recognised them as citizens despite being sent back as Bhutanese nationals.

“Bhutan initially accepted them as its citizens,” said rights activist Dil Bhutani. “But now, they are being pushed back to Nepal, generating fear and anxiety.” He added that those expelled from Bhutan no longer have a legal basis to stay in Nepal.

“The Nepali government needs to take this matter seriously and consider the status of these individuals,” he said. Rights activists have pointed out that the Bhutanese refugee community in the US is living in a state of constant uncertainty and fear.

These individuals are unsure of their next steps after being deported. “Bhutan does not recognise them as citizens, and they have no legal basis to remain in Nepal,” questioned another rights activist, T.B. Rai. “In such a situation, who will defend their human rights?”

Bhutanese refugee leaders have called for diplomatic pressure and a fair solution between Bhutan and Nepal. “This situation has once again created an atmosphere of fear within the Bhutanese refugee community, leaving them with an uncertain and insecure future,” said Tilak Niraula, a Bhutanese rights activist in the US. “If this issue is not addressed promptly, it could escalate into a more complicated problem.”

Over 100,000 Bhutanese refugees reside in the US, with more than 70,000 living in Pennsylvania. They reached the US as per the third-country resettlement programme.