73 FIRs against travel agents in Haryana for sending people abroad illegally

Days after 76 illegal immigrants from the state were deported from the United States, the Haryana police on Friday cracked the whip on illegal travel agents in several districts.

As many as 25 FIRs were registered in Karnal, 16 in Kurukshetra, 15 in Kaithal, 11 in Ambala, four in Jind and one each in Panipat and Yamunanagar districts.

Karnal Range Inspector-general of police Bharti Arora said that the FIRs were registered on the complaints of the deported persons. She said that an investigation has been initiated against these travel agents and action will be taken as per the law.

The police said that these FIRs were registered under Section 24 of the Immigration Act and Sections 420, 406 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code. However, they said that many agents were already booked for illegally sending people abroad.

An illegal immigrant Pushpendra Singh from Ambala district said, “I paid ₹14 lakh to a travel agent to send me to the US in April last year. I along with 18 other Indians, walked for nearly five days in the Panama Forests and spent a month there. On reaching Mexico, we received a country-out pass and later travelled to Tijuana that is near to the American border. Then, I was caught by the American Border Patrol. I had to spend seven days at a police station in California and I was transferred twice to camps where I spent nearly nine months and I was finally transferred to Texas. On May 18, we were deported back to India from Texas.”

Kurukshetra superintendent of police Astha Modi said, “We have registered 16 FIRs against different travel agents on the complaints of the illegal immigrants.”

According to health minister Anil Vij, of the 76 illegal immigrants, 22 were tested positive for coronavirus and they were admitted at a hospital in Panchkula and 52 have been sent to their native districts where they will be quarantined in government facilities for a period of 14 days.