Ferozepur man spent most time in handcuffs at detention centre

Handcuffed and without access to any communication device, 21-year-old Saurav was kept in a detention camp for days before his deportation to India by the US authorities.

A resident of Chandiwala villages here, the youth had left India for the US on December 17. He was arrested on January 27 by the US authorities immediately after he crossed over to the country from its border with Mexico.

“We were not allowed to speak to anyone. Our mobile phones and belongings were seized and we remained handcuffed most of the time,” he said, adding that finger prints of the detainees were taken by them.

Saurav said his family had spent Rs 50 lakh to send him abroad, selling whatever land they had.

The youth said he started his journey on December 17 when he was taken to Malaysia, where he stayed for a week. He was again brought back to Mumbai for 10 days. Later, he was sent to Amsterdam, from where he was taken to Panama and Mexico.

Saurav crawled under barbed wires to cross over to the US, where he was police official arrested him immediately. “Thereafter, we were shifted to a detention camp,” he said.

Saurav said two days ago, US officials told them that they were being shifted to another camp. “Once we reached an airport to board a military aircraft, only then we realised that we were being deported,” said Saurav.