Mumbai, May 22 A court here has sentenced a 46-year-old Bangladeshi national to seven months in jail for illegally entering India in 2005 and working in Kuwait for a decade using forged documents, observing that leniency in such cases may prove dangerous to national security.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Esplanade Court) K S Zanwar convicted the Bangladeshi national under Immigration and Foreigners Act as well as Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for cheating, forgery of public registers/identity proofs and possession of forged documents.
In its verdict of May 21, the court remarked that "a citizen of another country who is a foreigner to India cannot claim the same rights and facilities as an Indian citizen".
"If such leniency is given, the same may prove dangerous to national security and even to legitimate rights of Indian citizens as unauthorized entries can cause a strain on the economy of India," the court noted.
However, as the accused has been under continuous detention since his arrest on October 14, 2025, his sentence was deemed fully served and, hence, he is entitled for a set-off. The court directed the prosecution to initiate the process to deport the man to Bangladesh.
On October 14, 2025, the man, travelling under the name 'Piklu Dey', had landed at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai after returning from Kuwait on board flight 6E1236.
During routine immigration clearance at the arrival counter, an official grew suspicious when he noticed the passenger's passport showed prior travel restricted only to Bangladesh.
Upon questioning in Hindi regarding the purpose of his visit, the passenger failed to comprehend or respond adequately, the prosecution said.
The individual was immediately escorted to senior officials for intense interrogation, where he confessed to being a Bangladeshi citizen named Mohammad Iclaj Molla (alias Iklaj Mulla), hailing from Satkhira district of Bangladesh.
As per the prosecution, Molla confessed he had illegally crossed into India in 2005 and settled in West Bengal. By 2014, he managed to procure forged identity proofs, which he utilized to obtain a genuine Indian passport from regional authorities in Kolkata under his assumed identity.
Armed with the fraudulent passport, Molla moved to Kuwait on a work visa. He resided there for a decade and successfully renewed the Indian passport via the Kuwaiti authority before trying to return to India.
During the airport inquiry, Molla contacted his parents in Bangladesh, who transmitted copies of their original Bangladeshi identity credentials to his mobile phone, solidifying the immigration department's case, police said.
The magistrate after considering the evidence on record ruled that the prosecution has been able to prove its case beyond all reasonable doubts.
