Delhi Police arrest 260 Africans living illegally, crackdown on drug trafficking

In a bid to crackdown on drug trafficking and immigrants staying illegaly, the Delhi Police’s Western Range arrested 260 African nationals and registered 26 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, an official said on Monday.

Titled ‘Clean Sweep’, the operation was carried out in a coordinated manner by West, Dwarka and Outer districts, Joint Commissioner of Police Jatin Narwal said.

The officer added that the action came in the wake of several complaints about foreigners staying without valid documents and landlords renting out their premises without proper verification.

“A massive beat-wise operation was conducted in all police station areas of the Western Range. Extra officers and staff from other police stations, district reserves participated in this exercise,” the JCP said.

The operation was launched simultaneously in Dwarka, Bindapur, Dabri, Uttam Nagar, Mohan Garden, Tilak Nagar, Nihal Vihar and other adjoining areas.

In Dwarka district alone, 210 people from African nations, including women and children, were apprehended for allegedly staying without valid documents and for possession of narcotic substances.

The West district police detained 45 people from Africa while another 21 were apprehended by the Outer district police.

“During the verification process, several were found with expired or invalid visas. Drugs were also seized from the possession of some of the apprehended people, which included Indian nationals,” he added.

The officer said the crackdown also targeted landlords who rented out their premises to foreign nationals without following proper legal procedures. More than 25 house owners have been identified, and cases are being registered against them under relevant sections of the penal code.

The police registered 26 cases under the NDPS Act and 14 under the Foreigners Act, while document verification and case registration are still underway.