Deported Indian Immigrant Recounts Ordeal Of Torture, Mistreatment In US Detention: 'They Removed My Turban'

Jatinder Singh, one of the 112 illegal Indian immigrants deported from the US to Amritsar on Sunday, shared his harrowing experience of his two-week stay in a detention camp, alleging mistreatment and a lack of proper food.

He claimed that the US Army forcibly removed his turban (dastar) and threw it in a bin, reported India Today.

The 23-year-old from Amritsar explained that his desire to settle abroad with a job, due to limited employment opportunities at home, led him to make the dangerous journey. He also claimed that he was kept in shackles for around 36 hours on the US military plane that brought him and the other deportees back to India on Sunday night.

"I was sent to a detention camp for two weeks after I was caught entering the US border on November 27 last year. I left home on September 12. At the detention camp, they made me remove my turban despite my objections. They said it was their rule and threw it in the dustbin," he told India Today TV.

Singh alleged that the US authorities turned the air conditioning to an extremely low temperature, then cranked up the heater, leaving his skin dry.

"I did not get proper food there at all. They only gave me Lay's chips and Frooti juice twice a day," he said.

According to Singh, he had been introduced to an agent in November 2024, recommended by friends, and paid Rs 50 lakh to be taken to the US.

"My family sold all the land they had (1.3 acres) and I gave Rs 22 lakh to the agent in advance. I also sold the jewellery of my two married sisters to pay the remaining amount," he explained.

The agent had told Singh that he would be taken through the jungles of Panama for three days and then fly to Mexico, from where he would cross the US border via Tijuana.

When asked if he knew that such a risky journey might lead to deportation, Singh replied, "The agent said there would be no issues. He had experience ensuring illegal immigrants crossed the border safely without being caught."

Singh described the dense jungles of Panama and the disturbing sight of illegal immigrants' bodies along the way. "The agent cheated me and fled halfway. It took me three days to cross the Panama jungles. When I finally crossed the US border, the border police caught me and sent me to a detention camp, where I was tortured," he said.

He also claimed that during the 36-hour flight back to India, he was shackled, while men and children were not. "My hands were handcuffed and my legs were tied. We had issues with food and access to the washroom. They released our shackles 10 minutes before the flight landed," Singh said, adding that he now intends to look for a job in India and will never attempt to go abroad again.

The mistreatment of deported Indian immigrants has raised concerns, especially after a US Air Force plane carrying 104 deportees landed in Amritsar on February 5. Several deportees aboard that flight reported being shackled throughout the journey, only to be released upon arrival in India.

Out of the 112 deportees who arrived at Amritsar on Sunday, 44 were from Haryana, 33 from Gujarat, 31 from Punjab, two from Uttar Pradesh, and one each from Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.

A second US military aircraft arrived late on Saturday night, carrying 116 deported Indian immigrants. Many of the deportees claimed they were shackled throughout the flight, and some Sikh youths were allegedly forced to travel without their turbans, drawing criticism from the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

Altogether, the US has deported 332 illegal Indian immigrants on three separate flights so far.