New Delhi: A probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has revealed that roughly 35,000 people obtained student visas in the name of foreign institutes including over 260 Canadian colleges and universities as part of an illegal immigration racket sending people to the United States via Canada.
Additionally, the ED has identified two firms — in Mumbai and Nagpur — that worked extensively with roughly 800 active agents from across the country to bring on board people looking for ways to immigrate to the US and Canadian colleges offering documents for obtaining student visas.
The ED investigation stems from a case filed by the Ahmedabad City Police Crime Branch against Bhavesh Ashokbhai Patel in connection with a family of four freezing to death on the US-Canada border in 2022.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), on 19 January 2022, found Jagdish Patel (39), Vaishali Jagdish Patel (37), Vihangi Jagdish Patel (11) and three-year-old Dharmik Jagdish Patel frozen to death some 12 kilometres from the US-Canada border in the Manitoba province.
Earlier this year, a Minnesota district court found Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel alias Dirty Harry and Steven Shand guilty of four counts of human smuggling after prosecutors in the US indicted them for the deaths.
According to the prosecution, Patel conspired with Canadians and hired Shand to make five trips transporting people from the Canadian border to Chicago between December 2021 and January 2022.
The prosecution said the duo were aware of the prevailing harsh weather conditions, with temperature touching minus 36 degrees Celsius, but still went ahead with transporting 11 people, including four members of the Patel family, past the border.
“The defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the first and second counts and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on the third and fourth counts,” the US Department of Justice said in a statement on 22 November this year, adding that a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the US’s sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Role of agents & Canada colleges in illegal immigration
Having registered an Enforcement Complaint Information Report (ECIR) in 2022, the ED made the breakthrough about the firms that worked jointly with colleges and universities to send Indian people abroad on student visas this year.
Officials have said that one firm based in Mumbai referred nearly 25,000 students to colleges outside of India, and the Nagpur firm referred another 10,000 students to foreign institutes. The Mumbai firm also forged partnerships with 112 foreign colleges and the Nagpur one with 150.
These firms have attracted people interested in immigration through more than 5,000 agents from across the country, with nearly 1,700 of them from Gujarat alone, and the travel plan overall costs every aspirant between Rs 55 lakh and Rs 60 lakh. Of all the 5,000 agents, nearly 800 have been working actively.
Investigators have, so far, assessed that as part of the racket, money collected from aspirants in the name of admissions was deposited in the accounts of the colleges and universities. However, none of the aspirants joined the colleges from which they obtained documents to procure student visas to Canada. Later, the funds submitted to the colleges were transferred back to their accounts.
“ED investigation revealed that for sending the Indian National(s) to USA illegally, the accused arranged admission of the individuals in colleges/universities based in Canada and thereby applied for students’ visa for Canada. Once the individuals/students reach Canada, instead of joining the college, they illegally crossed the US-Canada border and never joined college(s) in Canada,” said an ED spokesperson.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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Such companies are running rampant in states such as Punjab, Gujarat and Telangana. Largest number of Indian illegal immigrants in Western nations are from these states.
And all these dubious companies assisting with illegal immigration are running their business in the open. Everything happens in broad daylight. All thanks to the involvement of local politicians in such endeavours. In Punjab, there is the added Khalistani dimension – these companies enjoy the patronage of the SGPC and other influential institutions with Khalistani leanings.
Again, there is a huge industry which enables even Class 5 passouts to obtain a fake Class 10/12 pass certificate along with valid GRE and TOEFL scores. And these touts and fraudsters operate with impunity as they enjoy the blessings of local politicians.
What is needed urgently is a holistic approach to tackling the problem and the various investigative agencies working in tandem. Only then will we be able to destroy this illegal industry which poses a grave security threat to the nation.