Illegal migration from India to US in spotlight amid probe into flight

Growing suspicions that Nicaragua-bound passengers were seeking to enter US illegally attempted to enter the US unlawfully

- Debarshi Dasgupta

Investigations into the Legend Airlines flight that was headed to Nicaragua with 303 Indians on board have strengthened suspicions that the passengers were attempting to migrate illegally to the United States, reflecting a growing trend of illegal migration from India to the US via South and Central America.

The Airbus A340, operated by the Romanian charter airline, had taken off from Dubai on Dec 21. It was forced to return to Mumbai on Dec 26 with 276 of its passengers following four days of detention over suspected human trafficking allegations in Vatry in France. It had stopped at the Vatry airport for refuelling en route to Nicaragua.

Twenty-five of the original 303 passengers stayed back, seeking asylum in France, and another two were held for further questioning. They have since been released after the authorities were convinced the passengers had boarded the flight of their own free will.

The vast majority of the 276 passengers who returned are from the states of Gujarat and Punjab, which are key sources of Indian migrants attempting to settle abroad.

Mr Sanjay Kharat, a senior official with the Gujarat police, told The Straits Times that 66 of the passengers are from Gujarat. Most of them are men aged between 20 and 35, potentially looking for better living opportunities in the US. Many were engaged in farming and animal husbandry while some were fresh graduates.

“All people on board going to the same place with the same purpose of tourism – it is not digestible as such,” said Mr Kharat, claiming the passengers had agreed to pay amounts ranging from 4 million rupees (S$63,300) to 12.5 million rupees to agents for facilitating their arrival in the US.