BENGALURU:A foreign national who had been deported in 2014 and banned from re-entering the country for 10 years, was detained at Kempegowda International Airport early on Thursday. The fact that he had sneaked back into the country points to a major security lapse.
Iranian national Farzad Jafari Oulia had come to India to pursue higher education. After completing his studies, he stayed on as a disk jockey in nightclubs in Pune and Goa. He was deported in March 2014 after Pune police realised he was staying with an expired visa.
However, Oulia clearly managed to evade security and enter the country despite the Lookout Circular (LOC) issued against him. On Thursday, Oulia was taken into custody by KIA police and later handed over to the Foreigners’ Registration Office (FRO) police.
A source told Express, “Unaware that Oulia was blacklisted, Bengaluru authorities gave him permission to leave the country for Turkey. But when the Bengaluru immigration office checked with the Pune FRO, they confirmed that he had been deported earlier. Oulia was detained and was asked to produce his visa. He produced one permitting him to stay in the country from August 22 to 28 this year.”
Sanjay Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (FRO), said, “The LOC is meant to block a foreign national from entering the country for a period of 10 years.” Once the LOC is issued, it becomes active only after 15 days. Police suspect Oulia may have taken advantage of this gap.