HM asks Dakshina Kannada to tighten net around foreigners living in India illegally

Home Minister Araga Jnanendra directed Dakshina Kannada district and city police to conduct station-level survey of overstaying foreign nationals.

"The survey should include foreigners staying in the district without any valid documents," the home minister stressed, demanding the survey report at the earliest.

"It will take some time for the police to complete the survey. Recently foreigners staying illegally in Bengaluru were arrested and sent to detention centres. A few had obtained ration cards and voter identity cards. There are many cases of overstaying foreign nationals engaged in illegal activities in Bengaluru," he said.

On general law and order situation, Jnanendra said Dakshina Kannada has performed satisfactorily, admitting that the conviction rate in the district remains low in Dakshina Kannada and city police jurisdiction.

"I held meetings with public prosecutors and assistant public prosecutors to understand the reasons behind the low percentage of conviction," he said. Shortage of staff and cases coming up for trial after two to three years are possible reasons. There are many instances of witnesses turning hostile and sometimes issues being solved through compromise. In some cases, the conviction rate is less than 12 to 13 per cent, which is not satisfactory, he said.

"I held similar meetings with public prosecutors and assistant public prosecutors in Chikkamagaluru recently. I have directed the Superintendent of Police, Commissioner of Police to work in coordination with public prosecutors," he said.

On police stations functioning in rented buildings, the minister said about Rs 200 crore was released for constructing 100 police stations.

To a query on BJP leader Anwar Manipady accusing the government of targeting minorities, the minister said, "Manipady is my friend. I do not know in what context he spoke. I will speak to him. There is no prejudice against any religion. All are equal in the country," he said.

On rampant usage of satellite phones in the coast, the Minister said the issue is being investigated. "The foreign ships in the sea too use the satellite phones. As a result, sometimes, the territory of the usage of satellite phones comes within the state," he said.

On increase in online frauds and provocative posts, the minister said the social media monitoring cell is closely watching social media. "If victims of online fraud file complaints within a few hours of the incident, then it helps the police to detect cases immediately," he added.