Iranian national staying in India for 11 years as Buddhist monk held

Security forces arrested an Iranian national allegedly living in India under the garb of a Buddhist monk for years, on Saturday late evening. He was arrested while attempting to cross over to Nepal without valid documents at the Indo-Nepal border in East Champaran district of Bihar.

The arrested man has been identified as one Hamed Akbari, a resident of Rajakan area of Tehran, the capital of Iran, said AK Pankaj, DSP immigration posted at Raxaul.

“How he was staying in India since the last 11 years without any visa and had procured UNHRC Card and was giving statements incongruent in nature, it only leads to suspicion of sorts,” said AK Pankaj.

The immigration officials recovered an Iranian passport from the arrested man who was handed over to the local police.

Hamed Akbari had reached Raxaul onboard Bharat Nepal Maitri bus services from Bodh Gaya.

At least six foreigners have been arrested in the same area this year before Akbari, and most were attempting an escape to Nepal. A Somalian national was the last to be arrested on December 19 while two arrests had been made in August.

On August 26, security forces arrested a Belarusian, while he was trying to cross the border at Raxaul and about two weeks earlier, a female foreign national was arrested with two passports with different identifies.