Punjab Police detain agent linked to US deportation allegations; second batch of Indian deportees arrives in Amritsar

In the first arrest following a US deportee's allegation, a Haryana-based immigration agent was taken from his relatives' home in Patiala's Partap Nagar by a special investigative squad of the Punjab Police, Hindustan Times reported.

On Friday night, Anil Batra, a Thanesar, Kurukshetra, resident, was taken into custody from his in-laws' home on suspicion of sending individuals to the United States through fraudulent means.

Shortly after the arrest, Batra appeared in a local court and was placed under police remand for three days. Police claim that Batra helped a complainant, Gurwinder Singh, a Patiala resident who was one of 104 Indians deported from the US on February 5.

Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav recently formed a four-member Special Investigation Team, headed by Praveen Sinha, Additional Director General of Police, NRI Affairs,to probe complaints regarding the involvement of fraudulent travel agents.

On Saturday, the DGP requested the public to come forward with any information about these rackets.

US plane carrying second batch of 116 deportees lands in Amritsar

A US military C-17 aircraft carrying 116 illegal Indian immigrants landed at the Amritsar International Airport late Saturday night, official sources said, PTI reported. This is the second such batch of Indians to be deported by the Donald Trump administration as part of its crackdown on illegal immigrants.

After an immigration and background check, the deportees hailing from Punjab were taken to their homes in police vehicles at around 4.30 am Sunday.

The family members of the second batch of deported illegal Indian immigrants seemed in a state of shock, with many of them saying that they raised money by pledging farmland and cattle to send them abroad for a bright future.

Many from the first batch of illegal immigrants landed in Amritsar on February 5, most of them from Punjab, who said they wanted to migrate to the US for a better life for their families but were duped by their agents. Their dreams were shattered when they were caught on the US border and sent back in shackles.

A third plane carrying 157 deportees is also expected to land on February 16.

-With agency inputs