Two Bhutanese travellers say a trip that was supposed to take them to an international event in South India turned into an ordeal involving allegedly fraudulent air tickets, hours of detention at an airport police station and additional travel and accommodation costs after they booked their journey through a travel consultant in Jaigaon, West Bengal. The travellers allege that tickets issued through KR Travel in Jaigaon, operated by Kalpana Sarki, were invalid when they arrived at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on December 23 last year. While the incident may have happened last year, it shows how innocent Bhutanese people are allegedly scammed and the need for all Bhutanese to be extra vigilant. The travellers had planned to attend an international function in South India on December 24, 2025, and said they booked the journey through Sarki with the assistance of a known Jaigaon resident and taxi driver. According to the travellers, they transferred Nu 52,750 for the airfare and another Nu 1,055 as an IC charge to a Bhutanese bank account on December 12, 2025. Their original itinerary was a direct flight from Bagdogra to Bengaluru on December 23, with the return journey scheduled for December 27. But when they reached Bengaluru, they said they were told that the tickets were not valid. The travellers said they were detained by airport security for more than three hours before being taken to the airport police station. They said they subsequently paid Rs 1,000 in connection with what they described as a petty offence, and were not prosecuted further. With no valid tickets to return on their original booking, they said they had to purchase new tickets and spend an additional night in Bengaluru before travelling back to Bagdogra. The travellers also questioned a last-minute change to their itinerary. While travelling from Bagdogra, they said they were informed that their journey had been changed from Bagdogra–Bengaluru to Bagdogra–Delhi–Bengaluru, allegedly because there was no direct flight between Bagdogra and Bengaluru. They later found that a direct Bagdogra–Bengaluru flight was operating. “We were told at the last minute that our flight route had changed as there were no direct flights from Bagdogra to Bengaluru. But when we checked at Bagdogra Airport, there was a flight from Bagdogra to Bengaluru. This is totally unfair and we were deceived,” the travellers said. They said the revised itinerary also left them waiting for several hours at Delhi Airport during the night. Promise to reimburse After returning to Phuentsholing, the travellers approached Jaigaon police and sought to lodge an FIR against the travel consultant. However, they said they withdrew the complaint after Sarki requested them to do so and assured them that she would reimburse the cost of the replacement tickets and hotel expenses. The travellers say they are still waiting. They claim that around ten months later, the promised reimbursement has not been made. According to the travellers, Sarki has repeatedly cited financial difficulties and medical expenses and has promised to settle the amount once her loan is sanctioned. The intermediary who initially helped the travellers make the booking has also reportedly lodged a complaint against Sarki. He said he had previously arranged tickets for Bhutanese travellers through her and had known her for some time. “Because of her deceit, I am losing trust from my Bhutanese friends,” he said. They also alleged that some ticketing agents in Jaigaon have Jaigaon police reportedly told the travellers that similar complaints had been made against the same individual. The travellers said police had also assured them that efforts would be made to recover their money, but they have not been informed of the outcome of the complaints. Another alleged case The allegations come amid another reported case involving Bhutanese travelers with a different agent in Jaigoan. A hotelier in Phuentsholing said the parents of one of his employees had planned to travel to Bodh Gaya, Bihar, during the winter pilgrimage season. However, they allegedly had to return to Phuentsholing after discovering that the air tickets issued to them were duplicates. The hotelier said the incident raised concerns about Bhutanese travellers relying on intermediaries to arrange air travel outside Bhutan. The affected travellers are now cautioning Bhutanese travelling through Jaigaon to exercise greater care when purchasing tickets, particularly when dealing with intermediaries or travel agents. charged Bhutanese customers significantly higher fares and, in some cases, demanded additional payments when customers pay in Bhutanese currency. Such allegations could not independently establish that all Jaigaon travel agents engage in such practices. For travellers, the incidents underline the importance of checking a ticket independently before beginning a journey. Airlines generally allow passengers to verify bookings using the official booking reference and passenger details through their own websites or customer-service channels. Travellers are advised to confirm that the booking is genuine and ticketed directly with the airline rather than relying solely on a ticket, receipt or confirmation document supplied by an intermediary. For the two travellers, however, the consequences went far beyond the cost of a ticket: a planned journey became an airport ordeal, additional expenses and, they say, a ten-month wait for money they were promised would be returned.
Sangay Rabten, Thimphu
