Bhubaneswar: In a significant breakthrough amid the ongoing crackdown on infiltrators in Odisha, police on Saturday arrested Sikandar Alam alias Siko, suspected of harbouring nearly 30 illegal Bangladeshi nationals in houses built on government land in Jagatsinghpur district over four years, after a weeklong manhunt.
Multiple surveillance-based traps were laid across several locations before his movements were tracked and he was finally apprehended in Jajpur. His younger brother, Abdul Motalif Khan (38) alias Tiki, was also arrested from Khurda, sources said, adding that they are being questioned at an undisclosed location.
Police have also detained two more individuals—believed to be Sikandar’s son and a close associate — and seized a laptop from Beherampur.
Earlier during a raid at Behrampur slum under Tarikunda panchayat, authorities had seized Sikandar’s passport and car, and detained 21 Bangladeshi nationals. However, he managed to escape, taking along with him the hard disks from CCTV cameras.
According to police sources, 40-year-old Sikandar of Dhanipur village, his brother of Behrampur and sisters Sawan Ajmi (39) of Patkura in Kendrapada, Parween Bibi (34) of Paikakul village and Badrunisha (30) of Dhanipur, had been providing refuge to undocumented Bangladeshis in Odisha. While Sawan and Parween have been arrested, the remaining three accused were on the run.
Sikandar is also suspected of having possible terror links and ties to extremist modules. He worked with the merchant navy and an oil refinery for nearly a decade, travelling to at least five countries. He was also running an unregistered madrasa in his village. It being suspected that he facilitated the illegal entry of Bangladeshi nationals, provided them shelter, and allegedly involved them in unlawful activities. The women and girls trafficked from Bangladesh were sexually exploited as condoms, fake Aadhaar cards suspected to be sourced from West Bengal, and pregnancy test kits were also seized from the spot.
On Monday, the district administration razed around 17 illegal structures – 10 houses in Behrampur slum and seven unauthorised constructions in Satapura village, which were being used to shelter Bangladeshi infiltrators. The houses were built by encroaching on government land.
Investigation revealed that Sikandar had grabbed government land with the knowledge of some revenue officials. Even TPCODL staff had provided electricity connection to the illegal settlement by installing meters.
This followed seizure of country-made firearms, daggers, sharp weapons and large quantities of suspected fake documents. While three suspected Bangladeshi nationals were detained on Sunday night and another 10 were taken into police custody for questioning on Monday. These illegal immigrants had managed to acquire fake Aadhaar cards and birth certificates, the sources added.
