Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Jun 6: In a major operation against illegal immigration, Mumbai Police have arrested seven Bangladeshi nationals who were allegedly residing in India without valid documents for nearly 15 years.
The arrests were made by the Anti-Terrorism Cell (ATC) attached to the MIDC Police Station following specific intelligence inputs regarding the movement of suspected illegal immigrants in the area.
According to police officials, the accused had allegedly entered India illegally from Bangladesh and later settled in Mumbai, where they managed to remain undetected for more than a decade while pursuing employment and carrying out routine activities.
The operation was launched after the ATC received information that a group of suspected illegal immigrants would be arriving within the MIDC police jurisdiction in search of work.
Acting on the tip-off, police teams conducted a surveillance-based operation and laid a trap, leading to the detention and subsequent arrest of all seven individuals.
Those arrested include four men, two women and one minor. Authorities are currently verifying their identities, backgrounds and activities during their stay in India.
During preliminary interrogation, investigators found that the accused were regularly communicating with relatives in Bangladesh through phone calls.
The operation comes amid the Centre's continued efforts to identify and deport foreign nationals residing illegally in the country.
Responding to the issue, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said India has legal mechanisms to deal with all foreign nationals found staying in the country illegally.
“All foreign nationals in India, if they are here illegally, including from Bangladesh, we have laws to deal with them and they’ll be accordingly dealt with,” Jaiswal said during a media briefing.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, suspected Bangladeshi nationals are referred to Bangladeshi authorities for nationality verification before deportation proceedings are initiated.
The ministry said India has sought verification of more than 2,860 suspected Bangladeshi nationals believed to be residing illegally in the country.
“We have many of these requests which are still pending with the Bangladeshi side, and we hope and expect that they will be expedited as soon as possible so that the deportation of people who are illegally staying in India can be taken forward in a smooth and efficient manner,” the ministry said.
Police said further investigations are underway to determine how the accused entered the country and whether any local network assisted them in obtaining shelter or employment.