Handcuffs on hands, shackles on feet, America crossed all limits with Indians for 40 hours

New Delhi (Team Newsbuddy) : Harvinder Singh, a resident of Tahli village in Hoshiarpur, Punjab, is one of the 104 illegal immigrants deported from America. He described the painful journey of being tied in handcuffs and chains for 40 hours. The family spent Rs 42 lakh in the hope of a better life.

Harvinder Singh of Tahli village in Hoshiarpur district of Punjab is also one of the 104 illegal immigrants deported from America. He faced more difficulties while returning from America by plane than he would have faced while going through the Donkey route. This is the reason why he is calling his journey worse than hell. He told that his hands were handcuffed and his feet were tied with chains for 40 hours. He was not even allowed to move from his seat. He was allowed to go to the toilet only when he requested repeatedly. But this too was extremely humiliating.

Harvinder said, ‘During the 40 hours, we had to eat food with handcuffed hands. The US officials would not open them even for a few minutes. We would keep shouting and they would stand like deaf. This journey was physically as well as mentally breaking.’ He also said that there was a good man in the plane, who gave them fruits to eat. The US sent illegal immigrants to India through the US military aircraft C-17 Globemaster. It stopped four times to refuel before landing in Amritsar. Harvinder said that he could not sleep because he could not fulfill the promises he had made to his wife before going to America via the Donkey Route.

A large number of people from Punjab have been going to America illegally. Harvinder was making a living by selling milk. He lived with his wife, 12-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter. In June 2024, he decided to go to America. One of his relatives told him that by paying Rs 42 lakh, he would reach America in 15 days. He was deceived that this would not be a dummy but a legitimate route. To raise Rs 42 lakh, Harvinder mortgaged her only piece of land and took a loan at a high interest rate. Kuljinder said, ‘For 8 months, my husband was sent from one country to another.’

American Dream shattered

During his journey, Harvinder faced life-threatening conditions. He recorded a video of his struggle and sent it to Kuljinder. They last spoke on January 15. The news of his deportation was no less than a shock for Kuljinder. She got information from the villagers that her husband was also among the 104 people who would be sent back from America. Kuljinder told that after losing contact with Harvinder last month, she had lodged a complaint against the travel agent in the village panchayat. She is demanding strict action against the agent and the return of Rs 42 lakh. She said, ‘We have lost everything. We were doing all this for a better future for our children. But now we are left with debt.’ Kuljinder also told that the agent extorted money from Harvinder during every journey. Two and a half months ago, when he was in Guatemala, the agent had asked him for Rs 10 lakh for the last time. This story is not only of Harvinder but of thousands of people who go to America illegally in search of
the ‘American Dream’