In a major crackdown against illegal immigration, the Guwahati Police arrested 13 suspected Bangladeshi nationals from Shanti Lodge in the Paltan Bazar area. The operation brings the total number of foreign nationals apprehended in the locality over 48 hours to 17.
The detained group—consisting of four men, four women, and five children—had allegedly been residing illegally in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, for nearly 15 years. Following recent security pressures there, they fled to Assam. Investigators revealed that the group was actively seeking a local network to facilitate their illegal exit back into Bangladesh.
Intelligence from a separate raid at the Vintage Home Hotel assisted the operation, where police seized fake Aadhaar cards and exposed a WhatsApp-coordinated trafficking ring managed by a local facilitator, Hazrat Ali.
Commenting on the proactive legal steps being taken, DCP Kulendra Nath Deka stated, "The process for their expulsion from Assam is currently underway under the provisions of the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act." He added that following a formal order from the Kamrup Metropolitan administration, "the 13 Bangladeshi nationals will be expelled from India." Surveillance across city lodges remains heavily heightened.