Number of foreigners found living in UP mosques

A number of foreigners who may have attended the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi, have been found to be staying in various places in Uttar Pradesh.

Lucknow/ Meerut, March 31 A number of foreigners who may have attended the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi, have been found to be staying in various places in Uttar Pradesh.

Lucknow police commissioner and other senior officials, on Tuesday, reached the Markazi mosque in Kaiserbagh in the state capital and found six nationals of Kirgizstan and Kazakhstan staying there.

The officials reached the mosque on a tip-off provided by the intelligence agencies.

The foreign nationals have been staying here since March 13. The Tablighi Jamaat meet was held from March 13 to 15.

The nationals have been sent for medical examination and will be quarantined.

According to reports, some foreign nationals are said to be hold up in mosques in Mandiaon and Kakori too.

"We are still in the process of investigation and we cannot reveal the number of persons. We do not know whether they are here illegally or not. The details will be made public only after proper investigations," said a senior police officer.

Meanwhile, foreigners, hailing from Sudan, Kenya, Indonesia and other nations, were also found staying at two mosques in Meerut district without informing the local authorities on Monday.

They have been quarantined them along with their contacts. Four facilitators have also been booked under relevant sections of the Foreigners Act and Indian Penal Code.

Superintendent of police (rural) Avinash Pandey said, "The local intelligence unit gave the whereabouts of these 19 men and we immediately reached the site. The first mosque is in Mawana tehsil where ten foreigners belonging to African nations - Sudan, Kenya and Djibouti were found. They were at once quarantined along with all those who were in their contact in the mosque. The second mosque is in Sardhana where nine Indonesian nationals were staying. Similar action was taken there as well."

According to police sources, four persons have been booked who had facilitated their stay in the mosques without informing the local authorities.

"They have been booked under section 14 of the Foreigners Act and IPC's sections 268 (public nuisance who does any act or is guilty of an illegal omission which causes any common injury), 271 (disobedience to quarantine rule) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant)."

After the incident, several teams have been formed to check other areas as well.

( With inputs from IANS )