Dunki distress: Deported Indian migrants return from US in shackles, recount ordeal

“My feet are swollen. I was shackled for 25 hours on the flight,” said Harjinder Singh, a 45-year-old farmer from Ambala, describing his ordeal after being deported from the United States. Singh was among the latest batch of Indian migrants returned by US authorities amid a continuing crackdown on illegal immigration.

A chartered plane carrying the deportees landed at Delhi airport late on Saturday night. Around 50 Indians, mostly from Haryana’s Kaithal, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Ambala, Yamunanagar, Jind and Panipat districts, were on board, officials said. Most were in the 25–40 age group and had entered the US through the perilous ‘donkey route’ — an irregular migration path spanning multiple countries.

Singh, from Jagoli village, said he spent Rs 35 lakh to migrate to the US “for a better life”. “I learnt cooking there and stayed in Jacksonville, Florida. My job was good. But the Trump (administration) captured me and sent me back to India. My lakhs of rupees have now gone wasted,” he said, showing his swollen feet. Singh said he had raised the money through hard work in farming. “I liked America; it is a good country. But Trump sent us back. Many Indians have been deported,” he added.

Another deportee, Harish from Kalsi village in Karnal, said he had gone to the US via Canada on a work permit in 2023 and was detained in February while working at a store.

Naresh Kumar, from Kaithal, said he paid Rs 57 lakh to an agent who promised to take him to the US, selling family land and borrowing heavily to raise the money. “It took me two months to enter the US. I was in jail for 14 months before being deported. I would not advise anyone to go through this route,” he said.

Five men from Kurukshetra district were among those deported. Police said all were handed over to their families after completing legal formalities.

Village leaders said many deportees came from farming families who had sold land or taken loans to fund their journeys. Sadhu Singh, sarpanch of Tikri village near Pehowa, said one youth had travelled via Italy before being caught in the US, where he spent 11 months in detention.

Police in Yamunanagar and Kurukshetra said no formal complaints had been filed so far.

The US has intensified deportations since President Donald Trump took office in January, targeting illegal migrants from countries including India, particularly Punjab, Haryana, and Gujarat.