For 13 years, it’s been the venue of the trial of 128 of the accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case. Now, the Mumbai Police are trying to convert the sprawling premises that is the specially designated TADA court in the Arthur Road Jail complex into a detention centre for foreigners who break the law.While the proposal is with the state Home department, what has given an impetus to the move is last week’s assault of policemen by Nigerian drug peddlers. “The premises can be utilised only after the trial is over.We will have to wait until then. The proposal is with the Home Department,” confirmed Mumbai police commissioner Dhananjay Jadhav.The special enclosure, which is now seeing the last stages of a 13-year-long trial, was carved out of the Arthur Road Jail premises near Mahalaxmi for security reasons. Its area is as big as a mini football stadium, with several barracks and offices. But the main courtroom is barely 35 feet x 15 feet.The idea was to avoid the security problems of transporting over 100 accused to the sessions court everyday. The Mumbai Police, who have been eyeing the place for a while now, are understood to have moved the proposal at a meeting of senior police officials who were discussing drug peddling cases, particularly those involving foreigners from African nations.The meeting also discussed the assault of policemen by Nigerian peddlers and went on to elaborate how the Mumbai Police have been finding it difficult to deal with Nigerians and African offenders. That’s because most of them usually over-stay—with expired visas—and are involved in drug peddling.Such foreigners need to be kept in a detention centre, a provision for which exists in the Indian Passports Act. “These aren’t jails, but a place which restricts their movement until documentation and paperwork regarding their nationality is sorted out. The TADA court premises could be ideal for this,” said a senior police officer belonging to Special Branch II which looks after the issue of overstaying foreigners.In fact, the Mumbai Police have chalked out a detailed plan to deal with foreigners in drug peddling cases. “ The plan has been prepared by DCP, Narcotics, Dilip Srirao,” said Jadhav.Srirao’s plan includes conducting a survey of Nigerians and Tanzanians staying in India since 1990 and drawing up a list to serve as reference point for drug enforcement agencies.Srirao, who refused to specify the nationalities of the criminal profiles that are being drawn up, said: “We have launched an offensive against cocaine peddlers and have intensified our crackdown against foreigners. Last year, we arrested 30 foreigners, while so far this year, we have arrested 12.”
