Indian migrants, who have recently been deported to India by the United States, shared their heartbreaking accounts of being duped by unscrupulous travel agents to whom they paid lakhs in hopes of reaching the US.
Most of these deportees, who went to the US in search of a better life and career, said they were promised a smooth journey but instead found themselves in legal turmoil, enduring months of hardship, hunger, and exploitation.
‘Paid ₹43 lakhs, arrested by border patrol’: Haryana man deported from US
“I was assured that I would reach the US within a month, but it turned out to be a lie,” said Robin Handa, whose family paid ₹43 lakh to a travel agent.
Also Read | ‘Crossed 18 hills, saw dead bodies’: Deported migrant on ‘donkey’ route to US
Over the next six months, the 27-year-old computer engineer from Ismailabad in Haryana’s Kurukshetra travelled across countries and crossed a sea, sometimes going hungry for days. When he finally reached the US border, he was arrested by the border patrol.
Handa was among the 104 illegal migrants from India, who were deported by the US authorities on Wednesday.
Since the return, many have shared stories of being defrauded by unscrupulous travel agents.
Reached US via Brazil, Colombia, Panama: Punjab man back from US
In Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, Harwinder said he paid ₹42 lakh to a travel agent who promised him smooth passage to the US. His journey, however, was anything but smooth.
“I was taken to Brazil and from there, I was forced to undertake a journey by road through Ecuador, Colombia, and Panama. There (Panama) I was forced to pay the remaining amount to the travel agent in India as I had only paid a part of it earlier,” Harwinder said.
Also Read | 487 Indians still in US with ‘final removal orders’: Foreign secretary Vikram Misri
Similar was the story of Punjab’s Jagtar Singh, who wanted to join his US-based brother, but claimed he was also duped by a travel agent.
“I boarded a flight from Delhi to Malta on January 11. I was then taken to Spain and Mexico via the ‘donkey route’. I entered the US on January 24 and was caught by the US Border Patrol,” he said.
Singh said he was kept at a detention facility for 11 days before being deported.
“My dream of building a better life has been shattered and my life has been ruined,” said a distraught Singh, who lives with his wife, their two daughters and his mother.
Police gathering information on travel agents
Police said efforts are being made to gather information about the agents sending youths to the US through the ‘donkey route’ — an illegal and risky pathway used by migrants to enter the US.
Also Read | Explained: What is deportation, and who does the US send back?
Kurukshetra Superintendent of Police Varun Singla told PTI that the police contacted 10 of the 14 deported youths and their families to get information about the agents.
He said the families of four of the deportees have left for undisclosed locations.
None of the families that the police spoke to complained to any agent.
