Kenyan woman held in McLeodganj for illegal stay

The local police have arrested a 36-year-old Kenyan woman in McLeodganj for residing in India without a valid visa or travel documents.

Additional SP Kangra Aditi Singh said that the woman, identified as Grace Nhdia, was staying near the Dalai Lama temple complex for the past three days. However, due to language barriers, the police were unable to determine the exact location of her stay. It was confirmed that she was not staying in any registered hotel or guesthouse.

Upon checking documents stored on her mobile phone, the police found that her passport had expired in October 2021, hence she was illegally residing in the country.

SHO, McLeodganj, Deepak Kumar said that a case had been registered under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act, 1946. The woman was produced in a local court on Tuesday which sent her to 14-day judicial custody.

Meanwhile, the police have appealed to local residents and accommodation providers in McLeodganj, Naddi, Dharamkot and Bhagsu to verify the documents and visa status of foreign nationals before offering them a place to stay. “We have launched a drive to identify foreigners staying without valid documents in the area,” said the SHO.