More than half of Indians in foreign jails are in the Gulf

Of the total, 4,389 are in jails of Gulf countries: 1,858 are in prisons in the UAE. That is the highest number of Indian convicts in a foreign country. Nepal with 1,222 is in the second position. As many as 115 female prisoners are in jails in 19 countries, though the gender-wise list of convicts in some countries is not available

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The Gulf countries have more than half of the Indian prisoners including undertrials and convicts lodged in its jails. According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), there are 8,441 Indians including women in foreign jails in 69 countries. They have been charged for various offences ranging from murder to domestic violence, reported The Hindu.

Of the total, 4,389 are in jails of Gulf countries: 1,858 are in prisons in the UAE. That is the highest number of Indian convicts in a foreign country. Nepal with 1,222 is in the second position. As many as 115 female prisoners are in jails in 19 countries, though the gender-wise list of convicts in some countries is not available.

Among the developed countries in Europe and the Americas, the jails in the US have 261 Indian inmates followed by the UK with 219. There is also a significant number of Indians in countries like Australia (65), Canada (23), France (29), Germany (92), Singapore (26), Spain (40), Sweden (2), etc. Though Kerala is among States which send the highest number of people abroad, the State-wise list of prisoners or undertrials from the State is not available.

According to MEA, Kerala (1.12 crore) has the highest number of passport holders in the country with Malappuram ranked third in the list of districts with the most number of passports issued (19,32,622), after Mumbai (35,56,067) and Bengaluru (34,63,405)

Speaking to The Hindu, NoRKA (non-resident Keralites) Roots Chief Executive Officer K Harikrishnan Namboothiri said the government agency had launched ‘Pravasi Legal Aid Cell’ to provide free legal assistance to non-resident Keralites (NRKs) lodged in jails in various countries, especially in West Asia, for minor offences or cases in which they were falsely implicated. Namboothiri also said the agency was in the process of collecting data on the exact number of Keralites lodged in foreign jails, including the details of the offences.

According to MEA, Kerala (1.12 crore) has the highest number of passport holders in the country with Malappuram ranked third in the list of districts with the most number of passports issued (19,32,622), after Mumbai (35,56,067) and Bengaluru (34,63,405).

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