8 Tablighis from Kyrgyzstan held for visa violation in K'taka

 Eight Kyrgyzstanis, affiliated to the Tablighi Jamaat, were booked in Karnataka's Bidar for allegedly violating visa regulations, a police officer said on Tuesday.

"We have filed an FIR against eight Kyrgyzstan nationals for violating visa rules under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act. They are also members of the Tablighi Jammat sect," Bidar Superintendent of Police, B.L. Nagesh, told IANS. Bidar is about 650-km north of Bengaluru.

Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked country in central Asia surrounded by Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan south and China.

The foreign nationals were camping at a mosque in the town since they came from Hyderabad on March 10.

"The Kyrgyzstanis are in quarantine at the place they have been staying and are under observation. We are investigating to find out if they also visited the Markaz in New Delhi's Nizamuddin area before or after the March 13-18 congregation," Nagesh said.

Of the 92 Tablighi returnees in Bidar district, 11 have tested positive and are under treatment at the designated hospitals in the town.

The remaining 81 who reported negative have been isolated and quarantined.

"As the Kyrgyzstan nationals did not show any Covid-19 symptoms, they were not tested or detained but have been told to remain in the mosque and not venture out till investigations are completed," added Nagesh.

The police are probing if the Kyrgyzstanis came to India on a tourist visa or a specific visa to attend religious functions or on missionary work.

Around 25 of the 300 Tablighi attendees from across the state have tested positive for Covid-19 and are under treatment.

A 65-year-old Tablighi returnee died on March 27 while he was under treatment at Sira in Tumakuru district on return from Delhi. IANS