260 from African nations held in crackdown against drugs, illegal immigrants: Delhi Police

New Delhi, Nov 10 (PTI) In a coordinated crackdowns against drug trafficking and illegal stay of foreign nationals in the national capital, the Delhi Police has apprehended 260 people from African nations, an official said on Monday.

The police action, named "Operation Clean Sweep", was carried out on Sunday in the Dwarka, West and Outer districts.

"The operation was part of the ongoing campaign to root out the drug menace and take action against overstaying or undocumented foreign nationals," Joint Commissioner of Police (Western Range) Jatin Narwal said.

The officer said that the action came in the wake of several complaints about foreigners staying without valid documents and landlords renting out their premises without proper verification.

"A massive beat-wise operation was conducted in all police station areas of the Western Range. Extra officers and staff from other police stations, district reserves participated in this exercise," said the JCP.

The operation was launched simultaneously in Dwarka, Bindapur, Dabri, Uttam Nagar, Mohan Garden, Tilak Nagar, Nihal Vihar and other adjoining areas.

In Dwarka district alone, 210 people from African nations -- including women and children -- were apprehended for allegedly staying without valid documents and for possession of narcotic substances.

The West district police detained 45 people from Africa while another 21 were apprehended by the Outer district police.

"During the verification process, several people were found with expired or invalid visas. Drugs were also recovered from the possession of some of the apprehended people, which included Indian nationals," he added.

The officer said the crackdown also targeted landlords who rented out their premises to foreign nationals without following legal procedures. More than 25 house owners have been identified, and cases are being registered against them under relevant sections of law.

The police registered 26 cases under the NDPS Act and 14 under the Foreigners Act, while document verification and case registration are still underway.

The operation was led by DCP Dwarka Ankit Singh, DCP West Darade Sharad Bhaskar and DCP Outer Sachin Sharma. A total of 30 teams were deployed, comprising four ACPs, 20 inspectors and about 600 police personnel.

During the exercise, a quarrel also broke out among some of the apprehended people, leading to preventive action against 49 people -- all from Africa, police said. As per the preliminary data shared by police, those detained include 210 men, 68 women, nine juveniles and six Indian nationals.

"While the verification of their documents is still underway, a large number of those detained are from Nigeria, with others hailing from Ivory Coast, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Cameroon, Uganda, Kenya and Zimbabwe," said the JCP.

The exercise will continue periodically to ensure that all illegally overstaying foreign nationals are identified and deported, he said. PTI BM BM SKY SKY