Over the past two months, immigration officers at Mumbai International Airport detained about 28 non-resident Indians. They were found carrying Indian voter ID cards even though they are foreign citizens.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has started the process to cancel these voter ID cards. The action follows the confiscation of the cards by airport authorities. Most of the people detained are citizens of Canada, the United States, Nepal, and Australia. Officials said the voter IDs raised immediate suspicions during routine checks.
Mumbai Airport officials increased inspections in the two months leading up to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections (BMC). The elections are scheduled for January 15, 2026, to elect members for all 227 BMC seats. The results are expected on January 16.
NRIs get voter ID cards by submitting false information to the Election Commission. Many of them travel to India on long-term or visa-free visas because they have family in the country. To get voter IDs, they claimed Indian citizenship and used relatives’ addresses.
While NRIs can legally hold Aadhaar and PAN cards, they are not allowed to have voter ID cards. Travellers are scanned at airport counters as they arrive. Once their nationality was confirmed, the cards were seized and reported.
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