Indian deportee who entered US via 'donkey route' says he saw person dying in Panama jungle

Punjab NRI Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal assured that the state government would support those who have been deported.

A US military aircraft carrying 104 deported Indians landed at Amritsar’s Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport on Wednesday, leaving families heartbroken and uncertain about their future.

Many of the deportees, mostly from Punjab, had spent between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 50 lakh to reach the US through illegal routes. Some had arrived in the US just months ago and were yet to apply for asylum before being detained and deported.

Their hands and legs were reportedly shackled throughout the journey, with the restraints removed only after landing.

Jaspal Singh, 36, from Gurdaspur district, Punjab, said he was captured by the US Border Patrol on January 24. “We were handcuffed, and our legs were chained throughout the journey. These were removed at Amritsar airport,” he claimed.

Harrowing Journey

Some deportees shared horrific tales about the deadly routes they took to reach the "dreamland,” from which they were soon deported.

Harwinder Singh, from Tahli village in Hoshiarpur, said he left for the US in August last year, and his journey took him through Qatar, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Nicaragua, and Mexico before finally reaching the US.

He recalled crossing hills, and a boat carrying his group nearly capsized at sea, but they survived.

Singh witnessed tragic incidents along the way, including the death of a person in the Panama jungle and another who drowned at sea, according to a PTI report.

His travel agent had initially promised a route through Europe but instead directed him through Latin America. The journey cost him Rs 42 lakh.

Another deportee from Punjab described the challenges of the 'donkey route' to the US. He recounted how their clothes, worth Rs 30,000–35,000, were stolen during the trip. His journey started in Italy before moving through Latin America.

He described enduring a gruelling 15-hour boat ride followed by a 40-45 km walk. "We crossed 17-18 hills. If someone slipped, there was no chance of survival. We saw injured people left behind to die and even dead bodies along the way," he said, as quoted by PTI.

Among the deportees in the first batch of illegal immigrants returned from the US, 33 are from Haryana, 33 from Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, three each from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and two from Chandigarh. The group included 19 women and 13 minors, including a four-year-old boy and two girls aged five and seven.

Meanwhile, Punjab NRI Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal assured that the state government would support those who have been deported. He plans to propose at the Cabinet meeting on February 10 that banks waive the interest on loans taken by families to fund migration to the US.