Punjab man’s Rs. 30 lakh dream ends in US deportation nightmare

World news: In February 2024, Jaspal Singh left his home in Fatehgarh Churian, Punjab, with dreams of building a new life in the United States. He invested everything—his savings, his trust in an agent, and the hope for a brighter future. However, instead of the promised opportunity, Singh found himself detained and eventually deported, returning to India with ₹30 lakh lost and his aspirations crushed. On Wednesday, Singh stepped off a US military aircraft in Amritsar, joining 103 other deported Indian migrants, their futures now uncertain.

“I was deceived”: Singh’s costly journey through the ‘Dunki’ route

“I had an agreement with an agent to travel legally with a proper visa, but I was deceived,” Singh, 36, revealed. The deal cost him ₹30 lakh, and what he believed was a legal journey turned into a perilous six-month ordeal across multiple countries. From Punjab, he first traveled to Europe, then to Brazil, before taking the dangerous ‘dunki’ route to the US border.

After finally making it into the US in January 2025, Singh’s American dream lasted just 11 days—all of them spent in detention. “I didn’t even know I was being sent back to India. When they put me on the flight, I thought I was being transferred to another detention center. Later, an officer informed us we were heading back to India,” he said.

Handcuffed and shackled: The harsh reality of deportation

Singh described his deportation as humiliating, recalling how he was restrained in handcuffs and shackles for most of the journey. “They only removed the restraints in Rajasthan. It was only when the flight landed in Amritsar that we realized where we had been taken,” he shared. The emotional toll was visible on his face as he admitted, “After everything I went through, I am left with nothing.” Funding his journey had come at a heavy price. “A lot of money was spent—some from my savings, some borrowed from friends, and some arranged with the help of well-wishers. Now, I blame my fate,” Singh added, with a faint smile that hid his devastation.

Mass deportation under Trump’s immigration crackdown

Among the 104 deported migrants, 30 were from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, 33 from Gujarat, three from Maharashtra, three from Uttar Pradesh, and two from Chandigarh. They arrived at Amritsar’s Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport aboard a US military C-17 transport aircraft. This marked the first wave of deportations under US President Donald Trump’s intensified crackdown on illegal immigration, a policy that continues to affect thousands of undocumented migrants seeking a new life in America.