The members of Bangladeshi Cell had raided the area around 1.30 am on Thursday to nab illegal immigrants. Local police alleged that they were not informed about the operation.

Dressed in plain clothes, a team of eight personnel, including a woman officer, raided the houses of suspected illegal immigrants, police said.

“The team must have got some information and were checking if illegal immigrants live there. However, they should have informed the local police. Six of these cops were suspended,” said Ajay Chaudhary, Additional CP (Southeast).

A senior police officer said the team detained eight people, including women and children, from the area. “They were conducting a midnight raid in Batla House, which is such a sensitive area, and the local police were not taken into confidence. This is a violation of rules. Had they informed us through proper channels, we would have provided them full cooperation,” he said.

The officer said after the local police received a call regarding protest from residents, they went to the spot. He said more than 250 protesters had gathered by then. “The crowd was agitated and angry. So, I fired two rounds in the air to make the public quiet, and then removed the officers of the Bangladeshi Cell to safety,” he said.

Those detained were let off after they submitted their documents, including voter ID cards, to prove that they are Indians.

Hamid Ali, a resident of the area, said the targeted building has one-room sets and three families live on the ground and first floors.