The Ministry of External Affairs is also mobilising Indian community organisations in the US to extend ‘all possible support’ to students affected by this.
New Delhi: India is looking to provide consular access to the eight student recruiters who were arrested by US authorities for an alleged visa fraud.
“We are aware of this incident. We are ascertaining more details. Our Embassy in Washington as well as our different consulates in the US are getting in touch with the concerned US authorities to provide consular assistance to the people who have been affected,” said Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs.
Kumar also said that the government has mobilised Indian community organisations in the US to extend all possible support to the students affected by this.
This comes at the time when the US government is looking at measures that will lead to tightening of visa rules for foreign students who visit the country for studies and then stay back despite visa expiry and lack of credentials.
One out of every 100 visitors from India, and around two out of every 100 overseas students from India overstayed their US visa according to a Department of Homeland Security report for fiscal 2017 (the latest available data).
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What the US authorities have alleged
PTI reported that “several foreigners, including from India, face deportation from the US after authorities busted a ‘pay to stay’ visa racket”.
“The eight arrested individuals are charged with fraudulently facilitating hundreds of immigrants to illegally remain in the country,” the report said.
“In late-night and pre-dawn raids, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested eight foreigners — all of whom are either Indian nationals or Indian-Americans — for aiding foreign nationals to remain in the United States illegally by actively recruiting them to enrol into a metro Detroit private Farmington University.
“Unbeknownst to the conspirators, the university was operated by special agents of the Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) as part of an undercover operation, from a small building in Detroit area. Information made available on the website of this university in particular those related to admissions leaves a lot of questions.
“Simultaneously, the ICE also has started detaining foreign students of this fake university and started the process of their deportation”
Sources told ThePrint that India is planning to get in touch with the people behind this alleged racket, to find on what basis the students were staying there, and if they knew they were being cheated.
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