New Delhi: Hundreds of Indian students in Canada have hit the streets in protest against the possibility of deportation. The students, mostly from Punjab, allege that Canadian authorities have accused them of obtaining their visas on the basis of fraudulent admission letters for Canadian universities.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has recently issued deportation letters to as many as 700 Indian students. The letters were issued after the CBSA found that the students' admission offer letters were fake.
Many protesting students claim that they arrived in Canada in 2018, but the fake letters only came to light now, five years later, when they applied for permanent residency.
"When we arrived in Canada our agent told us that the seats were full in the colleges which we had received admission letters for. He told us that universities were overbooking so he can transfer us to another college. Since we did not want to lose a year, we agreed." said Chamandeep Singh, a protesting student.
"We changed college and finished our studies but three-four years later, we were told by the CBSA that the admission letter on the basis of which we had received our visas was fraudulent," he added.
Lovepreet Singh, another protesting student, claimed that fears of deportation have taken a toll on the mental health of the students, with many even contemplating suicide as a result.
"We request the Indian government to raise this issue with the Canadian government. We are innocent and have been scammed. Our lives are at stake, many are even suicidal due to this. Seven hundred is an estimate, the real number of affected students is higher as many are suffering in silence and not coming forward. I got a deportation notice for June 30. We put our lives' savings to come to Canada and now we have been asked to go back," Lovepreet said.
The Punjab government has also reached out to Centre for its intervention in the matter.
