A division bench of the Gujarat High Court has questioned the city police over the issue of deportation of a few alleged Bangladeshi persons recently.
In the wake of a public interest litigation (PIL), a division bench
headed by chief justice SJ Mukhopadhaya has asked the state government to answer three questions: (1) When and why did the police arrest and detain the persons in question, (2) Whether the sessions court or any other competent authority had passed any order of remand against the persons and (3) Whether the persons deported have been declared as foreign nationals by the competent tribunal under the Foreigners Act?
Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM), a civil rights organisation, had filed this petition following the recent arrest of 75 alleged Bangladeshis by the special operation group (SOG). Out of 75 persons, 27 were deported to Bangladesh on November 25 last year while 20 were deported on January 10.
Rajesh Mankad, counsel for JSM, contended that, on April 23, 2009 the SOG had arrested and detained several persons including one Sorubibi's husband and two children from the hutments near Chandola lake on the ground that they were citizens of Bangladesh.
The counsel further said, all the persons arrested, detained and deported to Bangladesh are Indians and that the police have handed over Indian citizens to a foreign country without any authority and sanction of law and therefore, the action on the part of the police violated article 21 of the constitution.
