‘Operation Clean’: Kerala Police Arrest 27 Illegal Bangladeshi Migrants

Kochi: Kerala Police arrested 27 Bangladeshi nationals who were residing illegally in Ernakulam’s at North Paravoor area.

A senior police official said the department conducted an overnight operation as part of Ernakulam Rural Police’s ‘Operation Clean’ in coordination with Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) to trace illegal Bangladeshi migrants – like in several other parts of the country, including Delhi.

“Deportation has been carried out for 18 of them. Two FIRs have been registered in this matter,” he added.

According to police, these people crossed the India-Bangladesh border illegally in West Bengal in January 2024. They later managed to get fake Indian IDs and moved to Kerala.

“The arrested Bangladeshi nationals worked as daily wage workers. They were mostly hired by contractors. We have registered a case under the Foreigners Act and Passport (Entry to India) Act. Their arrest has been recorded. We are interrogating them and they will be produced before the court later,” a police officer said.

A middleman, allegedly involved in creating illegal fake documents, has been identified by police.

Last month, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena raised concerns over the growing involvement of illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya immigrants in criminal activities in the national capital. The Delhi police commissioner took the initiative for a special operation to identify such illegal immigrants.

Illegal migrants from Bangladesh have been under scanner since the arrest of one such individual in the stabbing case of actor Saif Ali Khan at his Mumbai residence.