The Belagavi police arrested seven persons of Bangladeshi origin on the charge of staying without valid documents in the city, on Saturday.
They have been charged under various provisions of The Foreigners Act-1946 and Passport Act-1967, and were produced before the court. The judge remanded six in judicial custody and one in police custody for a day.
The police, however, said there is no reason to believe they were involved in subversive activities. The city police were tipped off when Mohammad Bepari, a Bangladeshi citizen, was caught travelling without valid documents in Pune a few days ago. A joint investigation by the Pune, Bengaluru and Belagavi police led to these arrests.
The accused are Mohammad Alamin Shokikuddin Bepari, 30; Abdulhai Naiharali Gaj, 60; Rohan Shaikh Minto Shaikh, 21; Hannanshabbir Hamit Shaddar, 22; Aakibali Hussain, 20; and Hafizulla Islam Maneislam, Anjumbaig Madhu, 37.
They were working in meat shops in the city. Police sources said a travel agent in the city had created fake documents for them, including Aadhaar cards. They migrated to Belagavi in search of employment and possibilities of getting visas to foreign countries using Indian documents, a senior police officer said.
