Kerala Police, on Friday, arrested 27 Bangladeshi nationals who were illegally staying and working in Kochi. With this the number of individuals arrested in January for illegally staying and working in the state rose to 34. This is the first time so many Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested together in the state.
The latest operation, conducted by the Ernakulam Rural Police and the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), resulted in 27 arrests in North Paravur area of Ernakulam district’s Kochi city.
According to the police, the arrested individuals possessed fake Aadhaar cards and were posing as migrant workers from West Bengal.
The latest crackdown came following the arrest of two Bangladeshi women, 20-year-old Rubina and 23-year-old Kulsum Akhtar, on Thursday (January 30) who had obtained fake Aadhaar cards after crossing the border into West Bengal. The two were living in Kerala for nearly a year, beginning February 2024.
Reportedly they got their fake Aadhaar cards through an agent in West Bengal. The police were looking into this, and opened an investigation into those who helped the women to get to Kerala.
The first arrest under this operation took place two weeks ago when Taslima Begum was caught from Perumbavoor. Following this, four other Bangladeshi nationals, Hossain Belor, Mohammed Liton, Mohammed Bappi Sho and Mohammed Amin Uddin were arrested from various locations in Kochi city in January.
Authorities also launched an investigation to trace those who facilitated their entry and provided fake documents.
The public was also urged to report any information about illegal Bangladeshis residing in Kerala by calling 999 5214 561.