Bengaluru: The union government of India has urged the Karnataka state government to set up a “detention centre” in Bengaluru exclusively for overstaying foreign nationals and illegal immigrants from other countries.
The Union Home Ministry wrote a letter last week to the Principal Secretary of the State Home Department, directing to take up measures to set up a detention centre in Bengaluru at the earliest. The letter signed by PC Guite, Under Secretary, Union Ministry of Home Affairs (Foreigners’ Dept).
The development comes amidst reports of rising number of crimes involving overstaying foreign nationals across Bengaluru.
“It has been contended that a large number of illegal immigrants from Africa and Bangladesh are residing in Bengaluru. They have been allegedly found indulging in various illegal activities such as drug peddling, prostitution, online frauds, house thefts and robberies,” the letter said.
Referring to the provisions provided with the state governments under the Foreigners Act 1946, the Centre directed Karnataka to restrict the movement of foreign nationals awaiting deportation and restrict them in a detention centre for foreigners, ensuring physical availability at all times for expeditious repatriation or deportation as soon as the travel documents are ready.
Even though the Centre has written to the state, the city police presented a different version. According to them, a proposal to set up a detention centre for foreigners has been pending for three years. The East Division police had demanded a detention centre after overstaying Africans and Bangladeshis were involved in a spate of crimes in the last few years.
Last month, Bengaluru Central parliamentarian P C Mohan and Mahadevapura MLA Aravind Limbavali had appealed to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to set up a detention centre. Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju had also favoured the proposal and directed the ministry’s division concerned to expedite the process.
“As of now, we are doing our best with whatever we have in hand. However, that does not serve any purpose,” revealed a senior police officer. “We can send them to prison, but soon after they get bail, they have to report to a state-designated detention centre which is absent in our state,” admitted an officer. While the state has to bear the expenses towards their stay at the detention centres, the Ministry of External Affairs will later reimburse the money, according to sources.
Promising action, Kamal Pant, ADGP, Law and Order, said, “We are in the process of identifying a suitable place to construct a detention centre. It will be accomplished very soon.”
The kidnapped schoolboy was rescued by the police and reunited with his parents. Son of a gift shop owner from Basavanagudi area in Bengaluru, Chirag has reportedly told police that decided to make some quick money to spend on cricket betting and gambling after learning kidnap tricks from the ‘Crime Patrol’. According to police, Chirag reached a private school around 3pm on Tuesday on a Bounce rental bike and zeroed in on a fourth standard student who was walking out of school. He told the boy he was his father's friend and that he required help to search for a relative who had gone missing. The boy believed Chirag and rode pillion on the bike. Chirag then engaged the boy in conversation and learnt about his father's business and got his mobile phone number. He then made a call to the boy's father, demanded Rs 5 lakh and warned him against approaching cops. However, the boy's father alerted Cottonpet police and special teams were formed to crack the case. While Cottonpet inspector Venkatesh TC's squad verified CCTV footage in and around the school, Chamarajpet inspector BG Kumaraswamy's team started tracking the suspect's mobile phone movements. An hour later, the suspect's location was traced to a hotel on the Lavelle Road-St Mark's Road stretch. Police rushed there, rescued the boy and arrested Chirag.
Comments
Each dictricts should have monitoring system. Lack of monitoring creaters security issues
Crime rates are increasing at the same time chances of mob lynching also. People may have doubt on such people and it may leads to mob lynching. Better to start monistoring system and detenyion centres soon
Actually most of them are coming to India for better job. Sending back to refugee camp means sending to hell. Refugee camps are not safe, What we can do is proper monitoring of such people. It may help them also.
What is the purpose of detention centres. Do the authorities accept possible way to return them to their country?
Add new comment