Tamil Nadu government is planning to constitute Special Task Force to identify and deport illegal immigrants 

A majority of the illegal immigrants sent back from India had settled in Gujarat and the States along the India-Bangladesh border such as Assam, Tripura, and Meghalaya.  The photograph shows undocumented Bangladeshi nationals detained during raids in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, on April 26 this year. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

The Tamil Nadu government is planning to set up a Special Task Force to deport Bangladeshis and Rohingyas (Myanmar nationals) staying without valid travel documents in the State. Detention camps may be established soon at select locations to detain the illegal immigrants while the process of their deportation is being initiated.

The decision is part of a nationwide operation launched by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to identify and deport Bangladeshis and Rohingyas illegally staying in the country. The MHA wrote to the Chief Secretaries of all the States/the Union Territories, asking them to establish the Special Task Force in all districts under the supervision of the police to detect, identify, and deport the foreign nationals staying without valid travel documents.

After Operation Sindoor, hundreds of such illegal immigrants were identified in different States and handed over to the Border Security Force. They were “pushed back” to their respective countries. A majority of the illegal immigrants sent back had settled in Gujarat and the States along the India-Bangladesh border such as Assam, Tripura, and Meghalaya.

“We are in the process of setting up an STF and detention centres. Identifying illegal immigrants and taking action against them under the Foreigners Act and the Passports Act is an ongoing process in Tamil Nadu. Cases were registered against several persons and steps were taken to deport them in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs,” a top police officer told The Hindu on Wednesday.

Policy decision

Asked why the Tamil Nadu government had not constituted the STF or established detention centres even a month after the MHA issued the advisory, the officer said that since the matter was a policy decision and the management of special camps for foreign nationals being a subject of the Revenue Department, a proposal had been sent to the authorities concerned for taking a decision.

In Tamil Nadu, 364 illegal immigrants have been arrested since 2022 and 202 of them have been taken into custody in 2025 alone. The concentration of illegal immigrants is more in Tiruppur, Coimbatore, Erode, and Chennai and its suburbs. It is suspected that a majority of them have acquired Aadhaar cards and other proof of address or identity based on fake documents. The illegal migrants are employed in the textile, construction, and hospitality industries in these districts, police sources said.

The MHA asked the State law-enforcement agencies to verify the claims of suspected Bangladeshis/Rohingyas. If they claim Indian nationality and residence in some other State/Union Territory, the police or Revenue Department officials were advised to get the matter verified by the District Magistrates.

The District Magistrates would ensure that an appropriate report was sent to the deporting State or Union Territory after proper verification within 30 days. During the period of 30 days, the suspected person shall be kept in the detention or holding centre.

If no report was received within one month, the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer could take action to deport the suspected Bangladeshis/Rohingyas after capturing their biometrics, facial photographs, and demographic details on the Foreigners Identification Portal, the sources added.

Published - June 11, 2025 08:58 pm IST