Overstaying foreigners: Govt mulls more detention centres

A survey to ascertain the number of foreigners residing will be carried out in the jurisdiction of each police station. Officials will be held responsible if anyone is found overstaying, Home Minister Araga Jnanendra said on Monday.

The government will also set up additional detention centres in Bengaluru to house foreigners involved in illegal activities.

The new detention centres will come up after a discussion with Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. The existing detention centres are insufficient to house such foreigners who are overstaying or have criminal cases against them, the minister said.

He was responding to a calling-attention motion by BJP MLC Y A Narayanaswamy, who contended that illegal activities committed by foreigners was damaging the reputation of Bengaluru.

According to data from Foreign Regional Registration Office (FRRO), Karnataka has booked 296 cases in the last three years against 441 foreigners who are accused of various criminal activities. A total of 672 foreigners were found overstaying in the state, Jnanendra said.

“Some foreigners - whose visas are on the verge of expiry - make sure that a petty case is filed against them in order to extend their stay in the country,” he said.

Narayanaswamy was of the view that “70% of foreigners in Bengaluru are involved in criminal activities” and demanded measures against them. Jnanendra said that many Bangladeshis entered Karnataka with forged voter IDs and other documents.

“Karnataka will hold talks with the Centre about the issue. The West Bengal government should also cooperate in preventing infiltration from Bangladesh,” he added.

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