The government of Jammu and Kashmir has formed a committee to identify foreign nationals who have been living illegally in the region since 2011. The committee will be headed by the financial commissioner-cum-additional chief secretary of the home department and will include representatives from the police and the Foreigners Regional Registration Office. The committee will submit a monthly report to the Union home ministry.
The committee has been formed in response to a 2020 communication from the home ministry. The ministry had expressed concern about the increasing number of illegal immigrants in Jammu and Kashmir.
In 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir Police launched a crackdown on illegal immigrants and detained over 270 Rohingyas from Myanmar. The Rohingyas are a Muslim minority group who have been persecuted in Myanmar. Many Rohingyas have fled to India illegally in search of refuge.
According to government data, there are more than 13,700 foreigners living in Jammu and Kashmir, including Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshi nationals. The population of foreigners in Jammu and Kashmir has increased by more than 6,000 between 2008 and 2016.
