Lesson learnt, can’t achieve anything with illegal means, says Daler Singh
“I cannot forget the nightmarish experience I went through. The 10-12 days, which I had to spend at the San Diago US detention centre till we landed here, has taught me a lesson that nothing could be achieved through illegal means.”
This was stated by Daler Singh, who was among the 104 Indian migrants deported from the US in a military aircraft that landed at Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport here on Wednesday. He added, ‘I will try to go the US again, but on valid documents.”
Narrating his sordid tale, he said, “Deportees, barring minors and women, were handcuffed and their legs shackled all the way from the detention centre to Amritsar. The US authorities even got the turbans of Sikhs removed during the detention period, unmindful of their religious sentiments,” he said.
Daler, who belonged to Salempura village here, denied that they were subjected to physical torture or harassment at the centre or during the journey back home. “We were given chips, bananas, apples and soft drink during the detention period,” he said.
Recalling the day when he started his journey to the US on August 15 last year, Daler said a travel agent from Amritsar lured him into visiting the US on a valid visa. He was taken to Dubai where he was kept for around two months and then to Brazil. After a few days, the travel agent told him that he had to use ‘Dunki’ route to reach the US as there was no other way out.
“They forced us to undertake further journey. I had no inkling about the treacherous path we would have to take through Panama jungles. I along with a group of other persons walked for at least 120 km in the perilous jungles before reaching Panama City,” he said.
After spending a few days there, they were forced to cross the US border on foot where border patrol officials arrested them on January 15. They were taken to a detention centre in San Diego.
“There was a network of travel agents working for illegal immigrants. At every stop, a travel agent took the commission for ‘facilitating’ the onward journey,” he recalled.
Daler’s wife Charanjit Kaur said the Punjab Government should take stringent measures against the travel agents who dupe innocent people on the pretext of greener pastures.
She said the family had mortgaged their one and a half acres besides borrowing money from friends and relatives. “How will we repay the loans?” she asked, while urging the government to help them in getting their money back from the travel agent.
She said initially, the deal was struck for Rs 45 lakh, but later they were forced to cough up Rs 10 to Rs 15 lakh more as they were “torturing my husband”.
“After January 15 when he crossed over to the US, we lost contact with him. We were worried. Yesterday, we got a call from the local authorities to reach the airport to receive Daler,” she said.
