US deported 1,100 Indians in past 12 months for staying illegally 

The US in the past one year deported 1,100 Indians for staying illegally and has said that all those illegally crossing the US borders with Mexico or Canada can be deported besides facing prosecution.

Royce Bernstein Murray, Assistant Secretary for Border and Immigration Policy at the Department of Homeland Security, on Tuesday was addressing an online media briefing.

She said, “In fiscal year 2024 that ended on September 30 2024, the US repatriated 1,100 Indian nationals.”

Murray said the US does not have an exact breakdown to say which of those deported where from Punjab or its neighbouring states.

The last flight carrying such people had landed in India on October 22 and it had some 100 people, she said.

“Large charter flights – like the one on October 22 -- have typically a hundred people,” Murray said. This flight was part of the ongoing work of the US to deliver tough consequences against people staying illegally. “All those deported were adult men and women, and included no children,” Muray said.

On the primary reason for these deportations, Murray said these people sought to unlawfully enter the US from either the border with Mexico or with Canada; they did not have an established legal basis to remain in the US.

Individuals can also be removed for overstaying their visa; even if a person has had a lawful entry but commits a serious crime, it can lead to deportation, Murray said.

But generally on the flight on October 22, those deported were the ones who entered illegally, she added.

The US official said that in addition to charter flights, people are also sent back on commercial flights. The US continues to strengthen its relationship with India to track down unscrupulous migration agencies, she added.