The Versova police in Mumbai, Maharashtra, conducted a significant operation targeting Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in India. They apprehended 25 individuals from the Andheri West Yari Road area, including 21 transgender persons, two women, and two men. Authorities are in the process of deporting all those arrested back to Bangladesh.
According to police officials, these Bangladeshi nationals entered India unlawfully many years ago, initially passing through Kolkata and then moving via Delhi and Gujarat to Mumbai. Once in the city, they allegedly forged multiple Indian identity documents. During the operation, the police recovered a large number of both Indian and Bangladeshi documents from the detainees, now under investigation.
The action was taken based on intelligence received by the Versova police Anti-Terrorism Cell (ATC), indicating that the group would assemble at a local dargah in the Yari Road area. Acting on this tip, the ATC team conducted a raid and detained the 25 Bangladeshi nationals. Authorities are actively investigating to uncover the network’s extent, including those aiding their entry and stay in India.
This crackdown follows a previous incident on February 18, where a man suspected to be a Bangladeshi national was arrested in North Bengal for residing in India for years using forged identity documents. The arrested individual, Omar Farooq Byapari, had been living in the Chowdhuryhat Gram Panchayat area under Dinhata-II block in Cooch Behar district. He is accused of obtaining multiple identity documents fraudulently, including an Aadhaar card and a voter ID, by falsely claiming an Indian citizen as his father in official records.
The Versova police stated that this operation is part of their continuous efforts to combat illegal immigration and identity fraud in the city. The 25 arrested Bangladeshi nationals are set to be deported soon, while investigations persist to identify others involved in this network.
