Ahmedabad, Dec 22 (IANS) US President-elect Donald Trump has reignited the national debate on illegal immigration, pledging that, on his first day of taking charge of the office, he would oversee the largest deportation operation in American history. This announcement comes as the Biden-Harris administration faces criticism over immigration policies, with over 11 million undocumented immigrants currently residing in the US, 80 per cent of whom have been in the country for a decade or longer.
While the focus often centres on migrants from Latin America, a growing number of illegal immigrants are arriving from India — specifically, the state of Gujarat. Despite heightened border security, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded 90,415 Indian nationals attempting to cross into the country illegally during FY 2024. Of these, nearly half were Gujaratis.
From October 2023 to September 2024, a total of 29 lakh illegal immigrants were apprehended at the US borders, including 43,764 Indians at the Canadian border, the highest on record. Since October 2020, nearly 1,70,000 Indian migrants have been detained at the US land borders, making them the largest group from outside the Western Hemisphere.
One of the most tragic cases tied to Gujarat’s illegal immigration network is the Dingucha case, an example of the perilous journeys migrants undertake.
On January 19, 2022, the Patel family from Dingucha — a village in Gujarat — froze to death during a blizzard while attempting to cross the US-Canada border into Minnesota. Jagdish Patel, his wife Vaishali, and their children Vihangi and Dharmik had travelled to Toronto, Canada, on visitor visas before embarking on the dangerous trek.
Two men, Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel and Steve Anthony Shand, are accused of orchestrating the smuggling operation. Patel, identified as the mastermind, and Shand, who was hired to drive migrants across the border, face charges of human trafficking, criminal conspiracy, and culpable homicide in Minnesota.
In January 2024, Gujarat Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against 14 so-called immigration agents accused of operating a fraudulent scheme to help individuals illegally migrate to the US with promises of job opportunities. The case, which may reveal the identity of the mastermind behind the racket, has led to the investigation of travel agents who charged hefty sums for their services.
The FIR, lodged by the Gujarat Police’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) in Gandhinagar, followed the interrogation of 66 passengers aboard a Dubai-Nicaragua flight grounded in France. The Airbus A340, carrying 303 Indians, was stopped on December 21, 2023, on suspicion of human trafficking. The flight’s disruption exposed a widespread immigration racket involving private companies and agents who facilitated illegal journeys to the US and Canada by routing travellers through Europe and South American countries. This multi-stop route, referred to as the “donkey route”, involved creating fake documents and misleading paper trails to bypass immigration controls.
The attraction of the US for Gujaratis is significant. Gujaratis account for approximately 20 per cent of all Indians in America, with a high concentration in cities like Jersey City, New Jersey, and Edison, New York. Known as “Little Gujarat”, these areas serve as cultural and economic hubs for the diaspora. Gujaratis also dominate the hospitality industry, owning 22,000 of the 53,000 hotels in the US.
The reasons for Gujaratis’ perilous journey are multifaceted. Experts share that in Gujarat, economic disparities and limited job opportunities drive many to seek better prospects abroad. The well-established Gujarati community in the US provides a strong support system, making the American Dream seem attainable.
However, migration is often orchestrated through illegal channels. Families pay hefty sums to traffickers, known as “agents”, who promise safe passage through dangerous routes, often via Mexico or Canada. Tragically, some do not survive the journey, as highlighted by recent deaths at the US-Mexico border.
While Gujaratis in the US have built a reputation for hard work and entrepreneurship, illegal migration tarnishes the broader diaspora’s image and fuels political debates. Trump’s promise of mass deportations could have implications for undocumented Gujaratis, many of whom have lived in the shadows for years.
–IANS
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