The recent deportation by the United States of Indian citizens who have been staying in the country illegally has highlighted how private travel agents in India have been conning ignorant people by selling them the ‘American dream’ for hefty amounts of money. As per reports, out of the 332 illegal Indian immigrants deported by the US recently, 127 hailing from Punjab paid over Rs 43 crore to travel agents to enter the US.
This means each immigrant from Punjab deported from the US paid around ₹34 lakh on average to the agents. The 332 undocumented Indians were deported by US military aircraft that landed at Amritsar airport in three batches on February 5, 15 and 16.
The deportees were reportedly asked by Punjab officials who were compiling their data, to disclose the names of travel agents who helped them enter the US and the amount of money they paid to them. Out of 31 deportees in the first batch deported on February 5 those who agreed to disclose information about the money they paid, are said to have paid Rs 4.95 crore to travel agents. This batch included a minor.
The amount paid by the second batch of 65 deportees was Rs 26.97 crore while the last batch of 31 deportees reportedly paid Rs 11.37 crore to travel agents. The deportees were also asked to reveal the names of the travel agents who helped them enter the US. Out of the total deportees, most are from Punjab (38%) followed by Haryana (33%) and Gujarat (22%). The remaining deportees come from other States and Union Territories including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh.
According to the information provided by the deportees, the travel agents operated from different parts of Punjab and Haryana and some even operated from Dubai and Spain. The agents promised the deportees a smooth journey to the US but later took them through dangerous routes including South American countries and Mexico. Some of the deportees were reportedly detained and kept for months in the US immigration centres before being sent back to India.
Punjab and Haryana High Court hears PIL seeking action against fake travel agents
The Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Punjab and the Central government to decide on representation within 30 days during the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on 17th February seeking action against fake travel agents. A division bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Harmeet Singh Grewal asked the petitioner Advocate Kanwar Pahul Singh to submit a representation to the concerned authorities. The petition sought the establishment of ’emigration check posts’ in all districts of Punjab along with an upgraded list of ‘certified recruiting agents’. It further sought stringent action against unauthorised travel agents involved in ‘human smuggling’.
After the first batch of deportees arrived in India, the Punjab police formed a special investigation team to investigate the illegal human trafficking.
