This is the story of a 'crashed' American Dream, whose plane landed at Amritsar Airport on Wednesday, bringing back dozens of expatriates. Deemed without identity or papers by the law of the world's largest 'gatekeeper,' they returned with downcast eyes, shackles on their feet, handcuffs on their hands, and hearts full of anger and humiliation.
This narrative belongs to individuals like Harvinder, Jaspal, Nikita, and Ketul Patel, who all shared the dream of a better life. Yet, this dream was sacrificed at the altar of Trump's political designs. His nationalistic and 'America First' arrogant narrative suffocated American liberalism, leaving no room for these 'intruders' to justify how they followed their dreams into his country.
Shackles on Feet, Handcuffs on Hands
Who knows from where these American agents nabbed them and paraded them around, shackles on feet, handcuffs on hands, loading them into military cargo giants.
The tale of Jaspal from Hardowal village in Gurdaspur began in July 2024. A journey from Delhi to America, which typically takes 25-30 hours by plane, stretched into 4400 hours, taking him six months.
Source: aajtak
Landing at Amritsar Airport on Wednesday night, Jaspal arrived back at his village after nearly six months. He recounts that his hands were cuffed and his feet chained on the plane. As they were seated on the plane, no information was given about their destination.
Freedom at Amritsar Airport
A sudden proclamation from a police officer declared their return to India. Jaspal states, "Our shackles were only removed at Amritsar Airport."
Jaspal blames the travel agent for the debacle. He explains, "I had told the agent to send me with proper visas, but they deceived me." According to Jaspal, the deal was for 3 million rupees.
Spent 3 Million, Lived Like Expatriates for 6 Months
Jaspal asserts that he flew to Brazil last July, where he was promised subsequent air travel to America. However, his agent deceitfully forced illegal border crossing into America.
For six months, Jaspal lived like an expatriate in Brazil. Without valid documents, he couldn't file complaints for fear of exposure, lurking in shadows.
Jaspal narrates his trespassing from Brazil into America but was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol on January 24. Detained for 11 days, he was then boarded onto this plane.
He declares he is broken, having borrowed heavily for this journey.
104 Individuals Brought Back by American Plane
An American military aircraft landed on Wednesday at Amritsar Airport with 104 illegal immigrants. Among them were 33 from Haryana, 33 from Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, three from Maharashtra, three from Uttar Pradesh, and two from Chandigarh, including 19 women and 13 minors.
Jaspal Singh's family, consisting of his mother Shinder Kaur and cousin Jasbir Singh Randhawa, narrated a slightly different story to Aajtak. They said that after working for two years in England, Jaspal Singh went to America 12 days ago. Although their hearts are heavy, they are grateful to God for his safe return to India.
Jaspal Singh has one son and one daughter, and his younger brother works with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. Jaspal Singh's father Narinder Singh is deceased. The family describes Jaspal Singh as a hardworking man, having worked for eight years in Saudi Arabia and four years in Qatar.
The Story of Ketul Patel
Ketul Patel's homecoming tale is more disconcerting. Ketul was living with his family in Surat's Dindoli, and a year ago, he sold his flat and moved to America, as confirmed by Prafulbhai, the new owner, during an interview with Aajtak. Ketul's father Hasmukhbhai resides in Khodiyar, Ahmedabad, working as a tailor to support the family. When Aajtak reached out, Hasmukh Patel refused to comment on camera.
The 33 Gujaratis arriving at Amritsar from America were later escorted to Ahmedabad. Police provided vehicles to take them to their homes.
