Human smugglers coached migrants to falsely claim Khalistan support for asylum

According to CID officers, the agents advised potential emigrants from Punjab to pose as Khalistani supporters if apprehended by US security agencies

PRAVASISAMWAD.COM

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officers in Ahmedabad, investigating a human smuggling case after a chartered flight carrying 303 Indians, including 96 Gujaratis, was grounded in France, revealed that the smugglers had instructed illegal immigrants from Punjab to falsely claim Khalistan support when seeking asylum in the US, as reported by timesofindia.indiatimes.com.

According to CID officers, the agents advised potential emigrants from Punjab to pose as Khalistani supporters if apprehended by US security agencies. For the Gujaratis, a different strategy was employed, instructing them to fabricate stories of persecution to seek asylum in the US.

Police sources disclosed that individuals from Gujarat were guided to seek asylum by portraying themselves as Congress or Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers facing political persecution.

• France had detained the chartered flight on suspicion of human trafficking following a tip-off

• The flight, originating from Dubai and bound for Nicaragua, was released by a court at Vatry airport on December 24, allowing it to continue to Mumbai

In the case of newlyweds or young couples, they were instructed to seek asylum based on grounds such as inter-caste marriage or family feuds.

ADGP CID (Crime) Rajkumar Pandian stated that 14 agents were booked for charges including human smuggling, destruction of evidence, and criminal conspiracy. “Look-out circulars against the 14 agents, many of whom are currently abroad, will be issued shortly,” Pandian confirmed. Despite the agents’ efforts to erase messages and destroy evidence, the CID successfully recovered some crucial information.

The individuals booked by CID (Crime) included Joginder alias Jaggi Paji and Joginder Mansaram from Delhi; Salim Dubai and Sam Paji from Dubai; Chandresh Patel, Sandip Patel, and Kiran Patel from Mehsana; Bhargav Darji, Jayesh Patel, Biren Patel, Arpit Jhala, and Piyush Barot from Gandhinagar, along with Raju Panchal and Raja Bhai from Mumbai.

France had detained the chartered flight on suspicion of human trafficking following a tip-off. The flight, originating from Dubai and bound for Nicaragua, was released by a court at Vatry airport on December 24, allowing it to continue to Mumbai. Agency sources revealed that the smugglers had chartered the flight to Nicaragua from Dubai, planning to transport individuals from North Gujarat and northern states of India to Mexico, facilitating their entry into the US.

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