India deports over 2,356 Nigerians in five years

Indian police

The Government of India deported at least 2,356 Nigerians between 2019 and 2024, with removals quadrupling from 339 in 2021 to 1,470 in the 2023-2024 fiscal year.

This is according to data obtained by The PUNCH from India’s Ministry of Home Affairs.

The figures were drawn from three separate MHA annual reports for which Nigeria-specific data is publicly available.

In the most recent reporting period from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, Nigerians emerged as the most deported nationality from India, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all foreign nationals removed from the South Asian country.

Indian authorities deported over 2,331 persons during the period, with Nigerians representing 63 per cent of all removals carried out by the Foreigners Regional Registration Offices across seven major Indian cities.

They include: Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Amritsar, Bangalore, and Hyderabad.

The figure places Nigeria ahead of neighbouring Bangladesh, which recorded 411 deportations (17.6 per cent), and Uganda, with 78 deportations (3.3 per cent). Punch