A group of 17 Bangladeshi citizens have been arrested in Biswanath district of Assam for violating norms of their tourist visas as they allegedly carried out religious preaching.
They were arrested from the remote Baghmari area in the Gingia region of Biswanath district. They had visited Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan and also places in Cooch Behar district in Bengal before coming to Assam.
They are led by a man named Syed Ashraful Alam. Police said he'd been warned against religious preaching, which is not allowed on tourist visa, last month too.
Navin Singh, Superintendent of Police in Biswanath, said, “There is no tourist attraction in Baghmari area, that's why we sought to know why these foreigners were here. They are members of a particular sect. We also verified details of those who accompanied them for their religious preaching. They entered Assam in batches on different dates.”
They came to India in groups too, since August 24.
The leader of the group, Syed Ashraful Alam, told reporters while in custody, “We have relatives here, and we're visiting their places. “
