THE SLEEPY Sondekoppa village, which is nearly 40km from Bengaluru, is suddenly drawing attention from across the country following reports about a “detention centre” being opened there. The centre has five rooms, of which three are dormitories with five beds each, while the remaining two are store rooms. It also has a kitchen and a toilet complex. The compound is secured by a 10-feet-high wall, topped with barbed wire.
Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said the facility would house foreign nationals involved in drug peddling, till they are deported to their home countries. “In Bengaluru, we have seen many cases of African nationals in conflict with the law. This centre has nothing to do with citizenship issues,” said Bommai.
According to local people, the facility used to be a hostel for children belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes, who were studying in a nearby government school. Built in 1992, it was shut down in 2008, after the number of inmates dwindled. Recently, the hostel was refurbished and converted into a relief centre to house some “foreigners”, said the villagers.
The complex is now guarded by the City Armed Reserve, although it is owned by the social welfare department. “Our responsibility is to provide food and accommodation to the inmates,” said Social Welfare Minister Govind Karjol. The facility is set up as per the manual issued by the ministry of home affairs in 2019 to all state governments to open detention centres, according to sources.