Is India responsible for Instanbul's clogged toilet? Here's the exact truth
By Lokmat English Desk | Published: March 9, 2022 01:01 PM2022-03-09T13:01:04+5:302022-03-09T13:01:04+5:30
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This may sound weird and hard to believe but, frequently, the clogged toilets at Istanbul airport in Turkey may have a direct link to India.
In a major development, investigators who are weeding out illegal migration rackets being run in Gujarat, have received inputs that once illegal migrants land at the Istanbul airport, they are instructed by their agents to tear their fake passports and flush them down the toilets, jamming them.
According to a TOI report, explaining the reason behind the move, an investigating officer said, “If caught with fake Indian passports, they stand a higher chance of being deported back.”
The discovery of the frozen bodies of four of a Patel family from Dingucha village in Gandhinagar near the Canadian border in January has renewed focus on smugglers and the twisted methods they employ to help migrants cross into the US illegally.
The Gujarat police, who have since busted eight such agents and have several more under scanner since last month, have found that the preferred route for these migrants is the Turkey-Mexico-US one.
“(Illegal) migrants are issued strict instructions to make a beeline for the washrooms the moment they land in Istanbul and to destroy the fake paperwork. This is to avoid being caught loitering on CCTV cameras or be spotted by security and immigration officers,” an officer privy to the probe said.
If detained at the airport, they will not be able to travel any further, as they will be deported to their home country.
Explaining the modus operandi further, officer said: “Once the (illegal) migrants get rid of their fake documents, Mexican agents take over and provide their clients with another set of fake identity papers, including Mexican passports.
By using multiple identities, they break chain and make it tough for law enforcement officials to find clues that can be traced back to group of agents involved in the racket.”
For the unversed, Jagdish Baldevbhai Patel of Gujarat's Dingucha, along with his wife and their two children, was found frozen to death near the Canada-US border.
The Gujarat police launched a search to identify the travel agent who facilitated visas for the family of four.
