Srinagar, March 23 (IANS) Police in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district said on Monday that an FIR has been filed under the Immigration and Foreigners Act against a hotel in Pahalgam for failing to report the stay of 23 foreigners.

A police spokesman said an FIR has been filed against the hotel on the charge of violating the Immigration and Foreigners Act by failing to report the stay of the foreign nationals, including 19 British citizens.

Hotels are required to submit the compulsory online Form C, which registers foreigners. Police said during routine checking in the Dehwatoo area of Pahalgam in Anantnag district, it was found that 23 foreign nationals, including 19 British nationals, had checked into Hotel Misty Mountains Laddi on the evening of March 22.

“The hotel management wilfully concealed their stay from Police Station Pahalgam and failed to submit the mandatory Form ‘C’, thereby violating provisions of the Foreigners and Immigration Act, 2025 and compromising prescribed security protocols,” police said.

Accordingly, an FIR under relevant sections of the law was registered at Police Station Pahalgam, and an investigation was taken up.

Police in Anantnag have urged all hotel operators to comply with legal requirements regarding the reporting of foreign guests strictly.

In late 2025, a Chinese national named Hu Congtai was detained for illegally visiting Ladakh and Kashmir without the required permits and violating his visa conditions. There have been no reports of a broader, ongoing issue of numerous Chinese nationals illegally staying in Ladakh.

Hu had arrived in New Delhi on a valid tourist visa restricted to specific Buddhist circuit destinations (Varanasi, Agra, Jaipur, etc.). Ladakh was not among the permitted locations.

He flew to Leh, Ladakh, on November 20, 2025, without registering at the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) counter, a mandatory legal requirement for foreign nationals.

Security agencies were alerted by "unusual internet chatter" and found his phone history included searches for topics such as Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) deployments and Article 370. He also visited areas of strategic importance near military installations.

Following an investigation, Hu Congtai was deported to Hong Kong and blacklisted. Authorities also initiated a crackdown on local hotels and guesthouses for failing to file mandatory Form C for foreign guests.

--IANS

sq/dpb