Anti-Terrorism Wing and Ranjangaon MIDC Police, in a joint operation, arrested 21 Bangladeshi nationals who were living illegally in the Karegaon area of Ranjangaon MIDC on October 21, 2024.

After the news of the arrest broke, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya tagged it as "Vote Jihad." He took to X and wrote, "Pune police arrested 21 Bangladeshis. They have fake voter cards, Aadhaar cards, PAN cards..." (sic).

15 men, 4 women and 2 transgenders held

According to the police, Assistant Police Inspector Prakash Pawar (Anti-Terrorism Branch Pune) was patrolling in the Ranjangaon jurisdiction when ASI Vishal Gavane received confidential information that some Bangladeshi citizens were living illegally in the Karegaon area of the Ranjangaon MIDC police station.

Based on the information received, under the guidance of Pankaj Deshmukh, SP Rural Anti-Terrorism Branch, along with police staff from Ranjangaon MIDC Police Station, conducted a search in the Karegaon area.

Acting on the tip-off, 21 people, including 15 men, 4 women, and 2 transgender individuals from Bengal, who were staying on rent in the limits of Karegaon, were detained.

When the men were brought to the police station, a thorough interrogation revealed that all accused confessed to the crime. A case has been registered at Ranjangaon Police Station against the accused under Sections 336 (2), 336 (3), 338, 340 (2) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 of the Indian Passport Act 1920, as well as Section 14 of the Foreigners Act 1946.

Pankaj Deshmukh, Superintendent of Rural Police, told the media that 21 Bangladeshi citizens illegally crossed the India-Bangladesh border without holding any valid Indian passport and entered India at Karegaon, Pune District, Maharashtra State.

They are laborers and work for daily wages. We have detained them with fake Indian Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, and voter cards. Out of them, 9 names have been found with fake Aadhaar cards and 1 name with a fake voter card. We are investigating the matter, and soon we will identify the links regarding how they came to India and for what reasons, added Deshmukh.

Names of the arrestees:

1. Ajmul Sarat Khan alias Hasif Khan (50)

2. Mohammad Akbar Aziz Akbar Sardar (32)

3. Shafiqul Alimia Shaikh (20)

4. Hussain Mukhid Shaikh (30)

5. Tariqul Atiyar Shaikh (38)

6. Mohammad Umar Farooq Babu alias Babu Bukhtiyar Sheikh (32)

7. Shaheen Shahajan Sheikh (44)

8. Mohammad Hussain Sheikh (32)

9. Rauf Akbar Dafadar (35)

10. Ibrahim Kajol Sheikh (35)

11. Farid Abbas Sheikh (48)

12. Mohammad Saddam Abdul Sakhawati (35)

13. Mohammad Abdul Habib Rahman Sardar (32)

14. Aalimiya Tohqeel Sheikh (60)

15. Mohammad Israel Fakir (35)

16. Feroja Mutaqeen Shaikh (20)

17. Lipiya Hasmukh Mulla (32)

18. Salma Malik Roshan Malik (23)

19. Hina Mulla Zulfikar Mulla (40)

20. Sondeep aka Kajol Basudeep Vishesh (30)

21. Yeanur Shahdata Mulla (25)

(All presently residing in Karegaon, District Shirur, Pune)