Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday said that he has ordered a crackdown and deportations of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants from Maharashtra.
He said that he instructed authorities to identify and deport Bangladeshis living illegally in Mumbai and other parts of the state, reported PTI.
Shinde gave the directive during the Mumbai District Planning and Development Committee (DPDC) meeting, a day after the newly elected BJP mayor announced that removing illegal Bangladeshi immigrants encroaching on city roads would be a key priority.
Shinde, who is the guardian minister of Mumbai district, said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had taken the issue seriously.
“Bangladeshis who have infiltrated and are staying illegally should be identified. The district collectorate and police have been asked to carry this out. If they have been issued Aadhaar cards or other documents, they should be cancelled,” he told PTI.
The issue was raised by Shiv Sena leader and Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Manisha Kayande, at the DPDC meeting chaired by the Deputy CM.
Question raised on illegal Bangladeshis accessing government schemes
“Aadhaar cards and other documents of Bangladeshis staying illegally in the country must be cancelled,” she said, questioning how such persons could benefit from government schemes, reported PTI.
Local Congress MLA Amin Patel told reporters that he cited government data at the meeting stating that 1,060 Bangladeshi nationals were deported in 2025, and asserted that hawkers should not be harassed under the pretext of action against illegal immigrants.
“We believe that every illegal immigrant living in Mumbai or Maharashtra should be sent back to their respective country. But in the name of action against illegal immigration, civic authorities should not harass hawkers,” Patel said, reported PTI. He also added that Kayande should question her own party`s government over the issue.
Upon her election as Mumbai mayor on Wednesday, BJP leader Ritu Tawde had said that Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingya had encroached on the city`s footpaths, and clearing these encroachments would be among her priorities.
Police nab four Bangladeshi citizens living illegally in Mumbai’s Malad East
Last week, the Kurar Police detained a Bangladeshi national after receiving confidential inputs about his movement within the Malad East area.
According to police sources, on February 2, 5 and 6, Officer Rafiq Mujawar, attached to Kurar police station along with the Anti-Terror Cell (ATC) team, while patrolling within the limits of Kurar Police Station, received information about illegal Bangladeshi nationals from a reliable informant. The information said that a Bangladeshi citizen residing illegally in India would be visiting areas such as Humera Park Garden, Tuba Hotel and Sahil Hotel in Pathanwadi, Kurargaon, Malad East.
Acting swiftly, the police team laid a trap at the identified locations and successfully apprehended the suspect, without giving him an opportunity to flee. He was taken into custody and brought to the Kurar Police Station for further interrogation.
With PTI inputs)
