SIT faces hurdles as US deportees from Punjab name overseas travel agents
According to a senior SIT member, 10 FIRs have been registered based on complaints from US deportees from Punjab. However, in at least five cases, the main accused are sitting abroad. “As our investigation is in its early stages, we are identifying local operatives who collected money on behalf of foreign-based agents,” the official said.
The special investigation team (SIT) of Punjab Police, tasked with probing the human trafficking angle in the deportation of Punjab natives from the United States, has struggled to make significant progress as many complainants have named foreign-based agents as key figures in the network, making arrests challenging.
According to a senior SIT member, 10 FIRs have been registered based on complaints from deportees. However, in at least five cases, the main accused are sitting abroad. “As our investigation is in its early stages, we are identifying local operatives who collected money on behalf of foreign-based agents,” the official said.
Most payments were made in cash through local conduits, though some transactions involved foreign accounts. As a result, only one arrest has been made so far, the official said.
The sole accused in custody, Anil Batra of Shanti Nagar, Teka Market, Thanesar, Kurukshetra (Haryana), was apprehended from his in-laws’ residence in Patiala (5-E Partap Nagar). He is charged under FIR No. 06, dated February 8, 2025, under IPC Sections 406, 420, 370, and 120-B, along with Section 24 of the Emigration Act. Batra allegedly facilitated illegal immigration by arranging a Suriname visa and ticket for a complainant. The victim then travelled overland through South and Central America — via Brazil, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico — before entering the US illegally with the help of smugglers. As of February 14, 2025, Batra’s bank account has been frozen with a balance of ₹6.35 lakh.
A four-member SIT, headed by additional director general of police, NRI Affairs, Praveen Sinha, was formed by the Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on February 7— two days after the first flight carrying 30 deportees from Punjab landed at the Amritsar airport — to probe complaints regarding the involvement of fraudulent travel agents in deceptive immigration practices.
Of the 30 deportees who arrived in Punjab on the first flight on February 5, only 10 have filed complaints, and that too after persistent efforts by SIT members. No complaints have been filed yet by those who arrived on subsequent flights over the weekend.
“At Amritsar International airport, our teams urged the deportees to register complaints for justice. However, past trends suggest reluctance, as many have been assured by agents that their money will be refunded,” another SIT official said.
SIT head, ADGP Praveen Sinha, confirmed that raids are ongoing. “We have completed preliminary work on registered cases and are confident of apprehending the culprits,” he said.
On Sunday, a third US military aircraft carrying another 112 Indian immigrants landed at the Amritsar airport, taking the number of deportees brought back from America amid a crackdown by the Donald Trump administration against illegal immigrants to 333.
Of the 112 deportees, 44 were from Haryana, followed by 33 from Gujarat, 31 from Punjab, two from Uttar Pradesh and one each from Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. The deportees also included 19 women and 14 minors, including two infants.
On Saturday, another US military aircraft brought the second such batch of 117 illegal immigrants. Of these 65 were from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, and two each from Maharashtra and Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier on February 5, the first batch of 104 Indian immigrants were brought to Amritsar in a US military aircraft. Of the deportees in the first batch, 33 each were from Haryana and Gujarat, and 30 from Punjab.