Foreign nationals overstaying in India
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Delhi
2023, 2024
Abhay, Dec 16, 2024: The Times of India
From: Abhay, Dec 16, 2024: The Times of India
New Delhi : The national capital witnessed a significant spike in cases of foreign nationals overstaying their visas this year.
Delhi Police data shows that from Jan to Oct this year, 56 cases were registered under Foreigners Act, a stark contrast to just 12 cases during the same period in 2023. The number of foreign nationals apprehended also saw a substantial jump, rising from 10 in 2023 to 118 this year (Jan-to Oct).
According to police, they conduct regular drives across the city to crack down on foreign nationals overstaying their visas. “In most cases, we found that these individuals enter India legally, often on tourist, medical, or student visas, but fail to depart after their visas expire,” an officer said.
To evade detection, these foreign nationals frequently change their addresses and reside in unauthorised colonies, making it challenging for the authorities to track them down. Lookout notices against foreign nationals are also issued.
“When we apprehend them, they often provide false names or addresses and, sometimes, even claim not to understand our language,” police said. “They employ all sorts of tactics to avoid being caught, and it's not uncommon for them to feign ignorance or pretend to be unaware of the laws and regulations governing their stay in India.” They are deported to their countries.
According to police, they conduct a door-to-door verifi- cation process and gather essential data from individuals suspected of overstaying. This information is meticulously recorded and subsequently forwarded to Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) for thorough verification, ensuring the accuracy and legitimacy of the data collected.
Cops also take stringent measures against landlords who recklessly rent out their properties to foreign nationals without conducting thorough background checks. Recently, Delhi Police laun- ched a special drive to identify illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the capital and take action as per the extant rules in a time-bound manner.
Police have observed a disturbing trend where landlords in the city are often unaware of the mandatory provisions outlined in Foreigners Act, 1946. This lack of awareness can lead to unintended legal consequences for the landlords. During the drive, they are also made aware of the legal consequences. "A landlord is required to submit information about his tenants (including foreigner tenants) to the local police for the verification of their antecedents. In this regard, orders under 144 of CrPC (Now Sec. 163 BNSS) are issued from time to time. Non-compliance with this provision may attract prosecution under section 223 of BNS for disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant under section 163 of BNSS," police said.
Pakistanis, Bangladeshis overstaying in India
2014-17
In 3 yrs, 250 Pakistanis deported, Mar 30, 3017: The Times of India
The government deported over 250 Pakistani and 1,750 Bangladeshi nationals in the last three years, the home ministry informed Rajya Sabha.
MoS for home Kiren Rijiju said some Bangladeshi migrants “may be prone to Islamic fundamentalism and become easy prey for militancy , communal conflicts and antiIndia elements like Pakistani agency ISI“. In the last three years more than 250 Pakistani nationals and 1,750 Bangladeshis were deported to their countries after due process of identification, he said.
He said illegal immigrants entered the country without valid travel documents in clandestine and surreptitious manner. “There is no accurate data with regard to number of Bangladeshi citizens illegally residing in the country ,“ he said. Rijiju said many illegal Bangladeshi immigrants were found to be involved in cases relating to theftburglary , smuggling, human trafficking and drugs trafficking etc.
Pakistanis overstaying in India
2014-15
Nearly 28% of the Pakistani nationals who were issued Indian visas under various categories between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2015 had overstayed, the government informed the Rajya Sabha.
Of the 48,510 Pakistani nationals who overstayed during the two-year period, around 25% (12,200) had departed the country by the end of 2015. As many as 36,310 Pakistanis whose visas had expired were still in the country at the time, minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju said in reply to a starred question in the Rajya Sabha.
As for Bangladeshis entering India on a valid visa, Rijiju informed the Elders that 6,52,919 visas were issued to them in 2014, which went up to 7,51,044 in 2015. As many as 20,870 Bangladeshi nationals overstayed during the period January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014, though 8,387 departed the country following the overstay.
Rijiju said law enforcing agencies keep vigil and intercept foreigners overstaying in the country. In genuine cases where the overstay is unintentional or due to ignorance or compelling circumstances, the period of overstay is regularized and visa extension fee charged for the overstay period. However, where the overstay is found to be intentional, the foreigner is served with Leave India notice and penalty/visa fee for the overstay period is charged as per instructions, he added. Legal action under the Foreigners Act may also be taken depending on the merits of the case.
41,331 Pak, 4,193 Afghan citizens living in India
July 16, 2019: The Times of India
41,331 Pak, 4,193 Afghan citizens living in India, govt tells Lok Sabha
NEW DELHI: As many as 41,331 Pakistani nationals and 4,193 Afghan citizens, belonging to religious minorities of the two countries, are living in India on a long-term basis, Union minister of state for home Nityanand Rai said in the Lok Sabha.
Rai said keeping in view the difficulties faced by the members belonging to the six identified religious minorities of Pakistan and Afghanistan living in India in acquiring Long Term Visa (LTV), an online LTV application processing portal was launched in 2014.
"As per available information, 41,331 Pakistani nationals and 4,193 Afghan nationals belonging to religious minorities have been reported to be living in India on long term basis as on December 31, 2018," he said in reply to a written question.
YEAR-WISE DEVELOPMENTS
2014
The Times of India, Dec 23 2014
A STAY TOO LONG
It is easy to assume that majority of foreigners overstaying in India after their visa expired would be from the neighbourhood: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. This notion is only partially true. Of the 25,209 people who entered India on valid travel documents but were caught overstaying in 2014, the majority had come from Pakistan. US nationals, surprisingly, made up the second-biggest chunk of such travellers. They were followed by Sri Lankans, Bangladeshis and Nigerians. In the three years between 2011 and 2013, over 22,000 such travellers have been deported.
