gateway of india mumbai
Gateway of India in Mumbai [Representational Image]Wikimedia Commons

Mumbai Police have been put on a high alert after 26 Pakistani nationals were reported missing over the past two to three weeks. This was brought to the attention of police when security agencies tried to trace the Pakistani nationals, official sources said. Police have launched a manhunt for the missing people.

According to Hindustan Times, police said that none of the 26 nationals, while filling in their C-forms, provided accurate details about where they stayed or who they had come to visit. All Pakistani nationals who wish to enter India are required to fill C-forms. Among those missing is a man who stayed in Juhu for almost a decade and also owned a shop in the area.

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) is leading the hunt for the Pakistani nationals. The manhunt was launched after intelligence agencies issued alerts about threats originating from operatives in the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in Pakistan.

The manhunt was further intensified after security agencies failed to trace them on the basis of information provided in their forms.

The address of the person or the hotel in India where the concerned Pakistani national is staying, the duration of the stay and copies of the passport, visa and residential permit are the details needed in C-forms that Pakistanis are required to fill in order to enter India.

Teams of officials from the Maharashtra ATS have been sent to hotels and lodging houses in Mumbai to look for the missing Pakistani nationals.