A stateless man faces deportation to Assam. Ahmed Almakki was arrested ten years ago for unlawful entry. He served sentences in two cases. Both Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh refuse to recognize him.
BHOPAL: Arrested for unauthorised entry to India from Gwalior district in Madhya Pradesh almost a decade ago, the stateless man – Ahmed Al Makki
Alias Ahmed
– is now being deported to one of the country's largest detention centers located in Golpaada region of Assam. This decision to shift him was handed down by the Gwalior High
Court
on Tuesday.
Court had however expressed strong concern against union ministry’s helplessness on dealing with situations of ‘stateless’ people in detention. In one of the recent hearings in the case, the division bench at Gwalior high court had even warned state government as well as Union of India to be ready to pay cost of illegal detention on monthly basis to petitioner if they had failed to address the situation.
Before this order, court had asked as to why petitioner (Ahmed Al Makki Alias Ahmed) cannot be kept in the centers located in the States such as Assam, Delhi, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Karnataka. In response,
Praveen Kumar Newaskar
, Deputy Solicitor General for the Union of India had submitted that there is no guideline to deal with such type of persons.
“It is really shocking that Union of India, who is responsible for framing the guidelines, has expressed its helplessness on the ground that they have not framed any guidelines to deal with situation in hand. Under these circumstances, it is clear that petitioner is under illegal detention.
Accordingly, counsel for State as well as Union of India are granted a day's time to address as to whether Union of India is ready to take action as per directions by this Court are ready to pay cost of illegal detention on monthly basis to petitioner” the court had ruled on October 23.
After serving his sentence in two separate cases, Ahmed Al Makki Alias Ahmed had moved court requested to be shifted from central jail Gwalior to any designated detention centres for illegal immigrants across India.
The request was on grounds that the Embassies of Saudi Arabia in India and the High Commission of Bangladesh have both refused to recognize him as a citizen of their respective countries.
Additional Advocate General for State and Union of India had filed the reply by submitting that neither Saudi Arabia nor Bangladesh are ready to take this petitioner in their countries because the parents of the petitioner are refugees in Saudi Arabia and the passport of Bangladesh produced by the petitioner has been found forged.
They also said that the petitioner is not a citizen of this country, therefore, he cannot be permitted to live in this country for indefinite period.
In order to get the response from both the foreign countries, the countries were impleaded through High Commission, Embassy at New Delhi in the petition as respondents.
Later Praveen Kumar Newaskar, the learned Deputy Solicitor General who pointed out that the court had issued notices via Registered Acknowledgment Due (AD) post (RAD mode) to both the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in India and the High Commission of Bangladesh in New Delhi.
The notice to the Saudi Embassy remains unserved, while the notice to the Bangladesh High Commission was still awaited.
The case of Ahmed Al Makki
Ahmed Al Makki was arrested on September 21, 2014 by the Gwalior’s Padav Police due to suspicions regarding his citizenship. During investigation, he failed to provide valid documents to establish his citizenship, leading to his classification as an illegal immigrant.
An FIR (Crime No. 496/2014) was registered under, citing violations of Section 14(3)(2) of the Foreigners Act, 1946 and Section 3 of the Passport Act, 1920.
Ahmed Al Makki was subsequently remanded to judicial custody in Central Jail Gwalior, pending trial. On August 22, 2015, the trial court sentenced him to a three-year term. After completing his sentence on September 22, 2017, Ahmed Al Makki was released from Central Jail Gwalior.
However, his citizenship status remained unresolved throughout the investigation and trial. Due to the absence of a clear resolution regarding his legal status, Ahmed Al Makki was temporarily placed at Padav Police Station, Gwalior, which was designated as a "Temporary Detention Centre" starting from September 22, 2017.
On June 12, 2018, Ahmed Al Makki absconded from the temporary detention center, leading to the registration of a new FIR (Crime No. 321/2018) under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act, 1946. Acting on a tip-off, Ahmed Al Makki was arrested in Hyderabad on June 22, 2018.
After a subsequent trial, the court sentenced him, and upon completion of his sentence on 2nd July 2021, Ahmed Al Makki was temporarily placed in a designated detention center within Central Jail Gwalior, as per the official letter dated July 2, 2021. Ahmed Al Makki completed his sentences in both cases.
He moved a petition before the high court with a request to be shifted to a proper detention center instead of jail till his citizenship status is clear.
There are several detention centers across the country that are specifically designated for holding refugees, illegal immigrants, and foreign nationals awaiting deportation. These centers are primarily located in states such as Assam, Delhi, Maharashtra, West Bengal, and Karnataka. The facilities at these detention centers generally include basic amenities such as food, medical care, sanitation, and shelter.
However, the conditions across these centers vary significantly, with some facing criticism for inadequate facilities and poor living conditions. The government has been working to improve these centers in line with the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ahmed Al Makki informed court through lawyer.
After hearing court had directed Central Government, Ministry of Home Affairs, is directed to decide why Ahmed Al Makki cannot be transferred to one of the designated detention centers in states such as Assam, Delhi, Maharashtra, West Bengal, or Karnataka on October 23, 2024.
Central government sought more time to execute the order submitting that they do not have policy to deal with such persons. Court expressed concern over this submission noting that “petitioner is under illegal detention in such circumstances”.
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