Brijesh Mishra’s arrest in Canada raises parents’ hopes for justice

Tribune News Service

Avneet Kaur

Jalandhar, June 25

Brijesh Mishra, who was arrested by the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) on Friday for his alleged involvement in providing fake Canadian college admission letters to numerous students from Punjab and other states, is lodged in the Surrey pre-trial detention centre in British Columbia. His bail hearing is scheduled for Monday.

He is facing charges under five counts of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), including the unauthorised representation or advice for consideration (Section 91(1)), counselling misrepresentation (Section 126), direct or indirect misrepresentation (Section 127(a)), communicating false information (Section 127(b)) and non-compliance with the Act (Section 124(1)(a)).

A majority of the students arrived in Canada between 2017 and 2019. In 2021, the CBSA notified the students and later, during their applications for permanent residency, it was discovered that the offer letters they submitted to Canadian institutions were fraudulent. These fake documents were issued by unethical travel agents in Punjab, including Brijesh Mishra.

Surinder Singh, a truck driver from Malerkotla, invested Rs 14 lakh to secure a better future for his daughter, Rajandeep Kaur, who is one of the students. However, Mishra played with their future, causing her to bear the consequences.

Although she completed her study at Mohak College in Hamilton and obtained a work permit, she was upset when she came to know in April 2022 that her offer letter to Seneca College was counterfeit when she applied for permanent residency.

“Since April last year, she has been fighting a legal battle in a court, striving to prove her innocence. However, the court and the CBSA authorities were reluctant to accept her pleas, stating that the documents indicated she was a self-applicant,” Surinder said.

He added that it was only after Canadian politicians supported the students and they staged an indefinite protest outside the CBSA head office that Canadian Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced the cancellation of deportations and provided an opportunity to the students to prove their innocence.

“Now, with Mishra’s arrest, we have hope that the students will receive justice and it may also shed light on his motive for entering Canada,” Surinder added.

Jagtar Chand, another parent from Shahkot and the father of Dimple Kumar, who migrated to Canada in 2018, expressed relief at the news of Mishra’s arrest. He appealed to the Indian government to pursue Mishra’s extradition and set an example for all agents, who spoil innocent students’ future for personal gain.

Modus operandi

• Parents said they initially paid Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 lakh and handed over the remaining Rs 10 to Rs 11 lakh once admission of their children was confirmed and visas obtained
• Upon arrival in Canada, Brijesh Mishra told them that the seats had already been filled and their college admissions had been cancelled
• Subsequently, the students managed to secure admissions to other colleges with the assistance of friends or cousins residing in Canada

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