We Do Not Want Nigerians In India, Chase Them Out, Says Leading Indian Politician

A top-ranking Indian politician and former Chief Minister of the State of Goa has called on the country’s central government to ban Nigerians from entering into their country.

Ravi Naik, who is also a senior Congress leader, even derogatorily referred to Nigerians as “negroes”. He claimed that Nigerians enter into India ostensibly as students only for them to cause a lot of trouble in many cities around the country.

His words: “The government of India should ban them. They should be probed. It should be checked whether they are here to study or for picnic or to sell drugs.” He went on to reveal that a prominent political party, Aam Aadmi, had a fight with Nigerians in the past.

“Nigerians come here and do ‘dadagiri’ in New Delhi, Bengaluru and the entire country. We should chase the Nigerians out of here. Have they come to study? Are they really studying? Are they really going to college, schools? Are they really going to bogus schools or bogus typing schools, this has to be probed. It is very important. They create problems everywhere. We do not want Nigerian tourists.”

Ravi Naik’s outburst has come only a few days after Goa’s incumbent Chief Minister, Laxmikant Parsekar said his people, Goans, were unhappy with the attitude and lifestyle of Nigerians living in the coastal state.

On May 30, Goa’s Tourism Minister, Dilip Parulekar made comments which essentially toed the same line of resentment towards Nigerians. He said Nigerians create problems in Goa and sell drugs.

So much has been the resentment Indians, particularly the people of Goa, have towards Nigerians, that in 2014, the state’s home ministry officially referred to Africans as ‘Negroes’. Then Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar had to apologise after an outcry from many quarters.