MOSCOW (Sputnik) — German authorities’ policy on open borders and unrestricted immigration contravenes the country’s Constitution, the justice minister of the southern state of Bavaria, Winfried Bausback, said Tuesday.

Earlier in the day, the Bavarian government presented results of research carried out by former Federal Constitutional Court of Germany judge, Udo Di Fabio. The research found that the German federal authorities had ignored the country’s Constitution by accepting refugees without proper controls.

“Federal open border policy and [policy of] unlimited immigration contravene the Constitution,” Bausback said in a statement, as quoted by the German N24 TV news channel.

Germany has been the main destination for thousands of refugees coming to Europe from the Middle East and North Africa since the start of 2015. Bavaria, the key gateway to Germany for migrants arriving through southern Europe, saw 4,000 new arrivals on average each day in December.