State Home Minister G Parameshwara said on Thursday that the police have been ordered to start a statewide exercise to identify foreign nationals living in the state without legal status besides inspecting chemical factories as part of efforts to curb illegal drug production.
A state-wide operation has been ordered in Karnataka to track illegal foreign nationalsThe minister said authorities will verify the presence of Bangladeshi nationals and others allegedly staying illegally. Parameshwara told reporters, “I have directed the department to conduct a state-wide operation to identify Bangladeshis or other foreign nationals who are staying illegally.
He addressed public claims about the scale of the issue, noting discrepancies between political claims and official data. “Some claim there are 20 lakh (2 million) illegal Bangladeshis. As per our records, around 370 have been deported so far. Whatever the number, those staying illegally should be identified and action should be taken to deport them,” he said.
According to Parameswara, the records maintained by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) in Bengaluru do not reflect a large population of undocumented foreign nationals. Still, he said, law enforcement will continue. “Even if someone is staying here illegally, it has to be identified. Hence, the raids have been ordered,” he added.
In parallel, police have been asked to survey chemical factories, document their operations and ensure licensing compliance. The move is aimed at preventing misuse of industrial facilities for manufacturing drugs. “These are important instructions. Officials have already started the exercise of recording where chemical factories are located, what they manufacture and whether they have valid trade licences. All these details are being collected,” Parameshwara said. Strict inspection should be done within Bangalore Police Commissionerate limits.
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The minister also said that the department has prepared its budget demands to be submitted to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who holds the finance portfolio. “The department has prepared a presentation outlining its demands, which will be submitted to the chief minister. Most importantly, we want recruitment, opening of new police stations, and other requirements to be addressed,” he said.
The enforcement push follows scrutiny by the Karnataka High Court, which on Tuesday ordered the state government to record concrete measures taken to identify and track foreign nationals staying in Bengaluru without valid visas or the requisite FRRO registration.
The order came from Justice M Nagaprasanna while hearing a petition filed by two Nigerian nationals, Emeka James Yoba and Uderick Fidelis, who challenged their arrest under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. They argued that the arrest was illegal, saying they were not informed of the reasons and were not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours.
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The court referred to the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, which requires foreigners holding visas exceeding six months to register with the FRRO within 14 days of arrival in India, except under exempted categories.
Deputy Solicitor General of India Shanti Bhushan H told the court that the two applicants had entered India on business visas in 2015. Their passports were valid until 2018 and they are currently in the country without valid visas. He said they did not register with FRRO despite the requirement and described the situation as a significant lapse on the part of the state to deal with such violations.
Presenting the data, DSGI said that from 2021 to 2025; 2,560,468 foreign nationals arrived at Bangalore’s Kempegowda International Airport and 10,547 entered through Mangaluru Airport. He said the matter needed a thorough investigation, adding that similar cases involving other nationalities could raise national security concerns.
Justice Nagaprasanna questioned the state’s response, calling it “quite surprising” that the government was silent on the overstay of foreigners.
