Some 36 Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested in Kuwait for entering the tiny oil-rich nation on forged Nepali passports.

Upon interrogation Kuwaiti authorities found that the forgers had earlier been deported from the country.

Local Al-Anba daily reported that the Bangladeshi nationals had arrived into the country on different flights. During interrogation, the forgers admitted to buying the passports from an unidentified person in Nepal, each costing the equivalent  of between Rs 45,000 to Rs 60,000.

The daily added the fingerprint system which has been installed at the airport has largely proved successful in preventing 'unwanted' people from entering the country.

Deputy Director of the Airport Security Department Iyad Al-Haddad has referred 36 Bangladeshis to the Public Prosecution for entering the country on forged passports.

Investigations have revealed that racketeers in Nepal and some senior immigration officials have been providing safe passage to hundreds of Bangladeshi nationals trafficked to other countries, particularly in the gulf for the last few years after Bangladesh was restricted by Gulf countries to limited quotas for the supply of migrant workers.

This became clear after a massive increase in the number of Bangladeshi nationals entering Nepal by air over the last few years. nepalnews.com