The Hindu : New Delhi News : Govt. told to conduct survey of illegal Bangladeshis

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Thursday, Sep 23, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Govt. told to conduct survey of illegal Bangladeshis

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 22. The Delhi High Court today directed the Delhi Government to conduct a survey of illegal Bangladeshi migrants in the Capital so that they could be deported to their country of origin.

The direction by a Division Bench comprising Justice B.C. Patel and Justice B.D. Ahmed came when counsel for the city Government, V.K. Shali, failed to provide a specific estimated number of such migrants in the Capital to the Court.

When the Bench asked Mr. Shali to provide a specific number of Bangladeshi migrants in the Capital, the counsel submitted that there were no such figures with the city Government.

However, the then Delhi Police Commissioner in an affidavit last year had informed the High Court that there were lakhs of illegal Bangladeshis in the Capital, and their deportation was hampered due to the patronage extended to them by the vested interests in the Capital. The Bench also directed the Delhi Government to accelerate the job of identifying and deporting these illegal immigrants and file a compliance report within four weeks.

Earlier in his submission, Mr. Shali submitted that the cut-off date of March 1971, fixed by the Union Government also came in the way of identifying and deporting illegal Bangladeshis from the city. He submitted that a circular to this effect by the Union Government says that those Bangladehis who have entered the country before the cut-off date would not be deported.

The Bench took a serious exception to this circular observing "how can the Union Government issue such a circular?"

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