Action will be taken against landlords who illegally hosted 22 Bangladeshis: Goa CM

CM Sawant appealed to people not to rent out their premises without cross-checking the antecedents or filling the tenant verification forms

Days after the anti-terror squad of the state police detained 22 Bangladesh nationals staying illegally in various parts of Goa, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday said that action would be taken against owners of properties who had allowed them on without verification of documents.

Speaking to reporters here, Sawant also said that the Goa Police ATS was on the lookout for more Bangladeshis staying in Goa without proper documentation and that police teams were working on several leads.

“While carrying out tenant verification, police found many staying here without proper address or documentation. They are into illegal scrap yard business and into other illegal businesses. They are staying in rented rooms and carrying out such businesses,” the Chief Minister said. The Union Home Ministry has been informed about the details of the Bangladeshis, he said.

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“I appeal people to make verification of their tenants. Those who avoid giving their identity are involved in various crimes. Therefore people who rent out rooms should carry out police verification dutifully," he further said.

The Bangladeshi nationals have been kept at a special detention centre for foreign nationals in Mapusa in North Goa, where they are awaiting deportation.

"We will take action against those who have been detained and deport them to Bangladesh,” Sawant said.

During the series of raids last week, police had found fake Indian identity documents on the Bangladesh nationals, some of whom had been living in Goa for years, with their families. Police said that most of them were working in scrap yards located in North Goa.