In the greed of going to America for a better future, they had to endure such torture that they shudder at the memory of it. Whether it is Sukhpal Singh who was forcibly deported from America or 30-year-old Lovepreet Kaur, their teary eyes and hoarse voice tell the whole story.

They were treated very badly in the camp

Sukhpal Singh of Darapur village in Hoshiarpur said that after his arrest in America, he was kept in a camp where he was given beef and snacks to eat. He survived on snacks for 12 days. He was treated very badly in the camp. He was not allowed to meet legal advisors or immigration officials.

Shackles were put on the waist and legs

Before boarding the plane, I was handcuffed and shackled around my waist and legs. No one was allowed to move from their seats during this time, and even access to the toilet was very limited. To avoid using the toilet, I barely ate or drank anything on the flight. The shackles were removed after the plane landed in Amritsar, where I finally had access to food.

Sukhpal said that he had decided to go to America after working as a chef in Italy for a year. He and his two friends contacted a travel agent. He promised to take them safely to America for Rs 30 lakh each.

The agent's men confiscated everyone's passports

Instead of taking him to the US, the agent took him and the other young men to Nicaragua. Upon arrival, the agent's men confiscated everyone's passports and then began an arduous journey through Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico.

This included a 12-hour journey in a small boat across the ocean from Mexico to the US border in California. During this dangerous journey, one of his fellow passengers drowned and died. They were arrested as they entered the US border.

He was brought to India with handcuffs and shackles on his feet

Lovepreet Kaur of Bhulath, Kapurthala, told that she had left for America 25 days ago with her 10-year-old son risking her life. She and her son suffered many hardships on the Donkey Route for 25 days. Although she had paid Rs 1 crore to the travel agent to get them directly to America, he kept taking her to different countries.

As soon as they were arrested in America, the police removed the SIM card from their mobile phones. They even had to remove their jewellery, bangles and earrings. They were kept in a camp for five days and then deported. On February 2, the police handcuffed them and put shackles on them from the waist down to the feet, but nothing like this was done to the children.

They used to open the handcuffs while going to the toilet

After taking Rs 22 lakh from Gurpreet Singh of Pilibhit, the agents kept taking him from one country to another, sometimes by plane and sometimes by car. Gurpreet, who returned after being held captive by American soldiers for 22 days, said that there were 104 Indians in the plane, while the number of American soldiers was less. Handcuffs and shackles were put on his hands and legs. They were given sandwiches and juice for food, and the handcuffs were removed while going to the toilet.

Recently, citizens of Cambodia and China who were locked in the camp were sent back, but their country refused to accept them. All of them are stuck in America after returning. On being asked why they went to America illegally, they said that they would have been deported from England when their visa expired. They had planned to reach America before this.