The arrest of three suspected Al-Qaeda operatives from among the migrant community has brought to focus yet again the absence of a clear policy to effectively police the vast migrant community residing in the district.
Arbitrary surveillance and interrogation of migrants without valid reasons, a senior police officer said, ran counter to their rights guaranteed under the Constitution and would attract legal reprimand if questioned in a court of law.
“After all, they too are Indians and have the right to move around and work anywhere in the country. Instead, there needs to be a clear policy for law enforcement agencies on how to monitor them,” he said, adding that it was for the Labour Department to collect data on the migrant workforce.
The department, however, hardly has any comprehensive database. Till before the outbreak of the pandemic, it had issued insurance cards to around…