Bengaluru: The 40-year-old Russian woman and her two children, who were found living in a remote cave in Karnataka’s Uttara Kannada district, are now lodged at a restriction centre in Tumakuru where they will remain until formalities are completed to facilitate return to their home country.
The woman, identified as Nina Kutina, was found living in an isolated cave in Ramthirtha Hills near the temple town of Gokarna, with her young daughters on Friday by a police patrol unit on rounds.
“It has been ordered that she be kept in the restriction centre and then her case will be sent to the Russian embassy, which will approve that she be deported back to their country. There will be court-like proceedings after which we can send her once the Russian authorities clear this,” Narayana M, the superintendent of police (Uttara Kannada), told ThePrint. (SP was transferred Tuesday morning but not for this case)
The place where the woman was found had no habitation or even human movement since the region is filled with poisonous snakes and other wild animals. According to media reports, when the police were questioning her, a snake made its way inside the cave to which she said that it was her friend and lives in peace with the family.
The locality was patrolled as there were reports of a landslide in that region and that’s when police noticed clothes being kept out for drying.
It is unclear how long the woman stayed in the cave as there are varying versions. But it is at least one month that she has been staying there after entering the coastal district from neighbouring Goa, according to the SP.
Another senior police officer told ThePrint that the woman was already on the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) visa overstaying list in Goa but could not be traced.
Each year, millions of people from various parts of the world come to India for purposes like tourism, business, education, medical treatment among others. Of these, a significant chunk of people overstay their visas which attracts fines, imprisonment and deportation.
According to the Union home ministry, the number of people arriving in India was 2.49 crore under the previous government whereas under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, until 2024, 4 crore people arrived in the country. On 27 March, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that “India is not a Dharamshala where anyone can come and settle for any reason” and that Parliament has the authority to stop those who pose a threat to national security.
The Russian woman, meanwhile, acknowledged that their documents had expired but rejected information of them overstaying since 2017. “It is lying, because they found my old passport, and they decide what it’s like, they did not check if it’s real true. We don’t have our visa, valid visa, our visa finished, but it was short time ago. After 2017, we already were in four countries, leave and then come back to India (sic),” Kutina told ANI.
“After I had my son, big son, he died, died, and because it happened, and it brought what my new visa, I stayed little more, but not so much, how they tell (sic),” she said, adding that she was living outside Russia for 15 years.
‘Statements full of inconsistencies’
While presenting the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, Shah had said that the government had given legal basis for ‘Immigration, Visa, Foreigners Registration, and Tracking’ (IVFRT) to monitor illegal immigrants and those staying beyond the designated time frame.
But people on short-term visas do not need to register themselves with the FRRO.
The Russian woman came to India on a business visa, according to another senior police officer. He said that the woman was already on the visa overstaying list in Goa and there were attempts to trace her. “The FRRO tries to track down people who overstay their visas. But since she had moved out of Goa and was not in any place of habitation, she remained unnoticed.”
The police officer said that the woman will be deported since she is not from a country where she has any threat of life that could possibly make up for a case of asylum.
Her two children were born in India but are not naturalised citizens since they were born after 2004 and neither parent is an Indian, the officer said.
The woman speaks English but her mobile phone settings were in Russian, according to the police. She did also have some cash and has not been very consistent with her statements, they added.
Visuals recorded by TV news media outlets and others show that the place barely had any access paths and was at least three to four kilometers away from any habitation. The cave had a curtain which possibly served as a door, an idol of a goddess, some bags, sleeping mats and even some decorative items on the ceiling. The cave appeared big enough to house a small family. There is even an anthill inside the cave.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
Also Read: Karnataka govt’s online betting ban draft bill skipped consultations with IT dept
Each year, millions of people from various parts of the world come to India for purposes like tourism, business, education, medical treatment among others. Of these, a significant chunk of people overstay their visas which attracts fines, imprisonment and deportation.
That is the biggest compliment the world can give to my country India – Mera Bharat Mahaan.