KATHMANDU: In a powerful joint move, four United Nations human rights experts have raised urgent concerns regarding the unresolved disappearance of Lok Nath Acharya, a prominent Bhutanese human rights defender of Nepali origin who went missing in 2014.

The experts—Mary Lawlor, Matthew Gillett, Gabriella Citroni, and Irene Khan—have issued a formal communication to the governments of Bhutan and India, demanding clear information about Acharya’s fate and whereabouts.

Acharya was a vocal advocate for the rights of the Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa community, tens of thousands of whom were expelled from Bhutan in the early 1990s. As a member of the Human Rights Organization of Bhutan, he worked in exile documenting rights abuses.

On October 16, 2014, he traveled to West Bengal, India, to attend a human rights meeting. There, he was reportedly detained and forcibly extradited to Bhutan by individuals believed to be affiliated with the Royal Bhutan Police. His location has remained unknown ever since, with no official acknowledgment from Bhutanese authorities.

The UN intervention follows persistent advocacy by the Global Campaign for the Release of Political Prisoners in Bhutan (GCRPPB), led by Ram Karki and supported by Acharya’s daughter, Srijana Acharya. Earlier this year, GCRPPB submitted a detailed report to UN Special Rapporteurs, based on a referral from the U.S. Department of State.

The joint UN communication seeks detailed answers regarding Acharya’s alleged detention, transfer, health status, and legal status, and calls for transparency from both Bhutan and India. Mary Lawlor emphasized that Acharya appears to have been targeted for his peaceful human rights work, and warned that enforced disappearances are grave violations of international law.

The case has now been submitted to the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. GCRPPB has called on the Royal Government of Bhutan and King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck to engage constructively with international mechanisms and uphold the rights of all individuals, regardless of ethnicity or political belief.