Indian students in Canada face deportation: In 10 points

The Canadian government has now issued a stay order on deportation notices sent to the students

The students were not aware of the fake admission letters until they received deportation letters. (Express File)

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Several Indian students are facing deportation from Canada for showing ‘fake offer letters’ to procure a study visa in the North American country. Most of these students have already completed their degrees and got work permits in Canada.

The students, many of them from Punjab, only received the deportation letters from the Canadian Border Security Agency (CBSA) when they applied for permanent residency (PR). They had applied for study visas through a migration services firm called Education Migration Services, which was based in Jalandhar, Punjab.

The Canadian government has now issued a stay order on deportation notices sent to the students. The Indian government is learnt to have welcomed the development while saying that the actual number of students facing deportation is much less than the earlier reported figure of 700.

01
When did the matter come to light?
The students came to know of the 'fake admission letters' in March, when they applied for permanent residency, after completing their degrees and getting work permits. Most of the students had gone to Canada on a study visa between 2017 and 2018.
02
How did the students know?
The students were sent deportation letters by the Canadian Border Service Agency who informed them that their college offer letters were fake, thus making them illegal immigrants to the country.
03
Who forged the college admission letters?
Most of the students facing deportation had obtained a study visa through forged offer letters provided by Jalandhar based agent Brijesh Mishra, who had a firm named Education Migration Services.

Mishra had charged Rs 16 lakh from each student, which would be used for all expenses including the admission fee and the processing of their documents. However, this excluded the flight tickets and security deposits.
04
How did the forging of the letters happen?
The agent, Mishra, obtained the college offer letters for students. But once they reached Canada, he asked them to switch to a different college. Canada permits students to change their colleges after they reach the country for their studies.
05
What is the regular procedure to switch colleges?
Students who want to change their colleges after landing in Canada have to inform Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) of this decision. They also have to provide the details of their Designated Learning Institute (DLI) and the name and ID number of the new college.
06
How did the students react to the deportation news?
The students have been protesting against their deportation by holding an "indefinite sit-in" outside the CBSA headquarters since May 29, arguing that they have already completed their studies and obtained work permits in the country legally.
07
What was the Punjab government's response?
Punjab NRI Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal assured the students that the state government would make efforts to stop the deportation and provide free legal assistance to the students. He also urged the Union Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar to intervene in the matter.
08
Is there hope for the students?
Union External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar assured the Punjab Government that the Indian High Commission in Canada would help the students facing deportation. There might still be hope for the students as Canada has put a stay on the deportation of students, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau saying that the students will be given the opportunity to present their case.
09
Was there any action taken against the agent?
A case has been filed against Brijesh Mishra, the agent responsible for forging the admission letters, and two accomplices. Mishra is currently missing and his agency's licence has been revoked. The Canadian embassy officials, who granted visas based on the fake admission letters, are also being investigated.
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10
Families feel the pinch
Not only the students facing deportation from Canada are undergoing financial stress and anxiety but also their helpless parents in Punjab who are spending sleepless nights worrying about their beleaguered children caught in the “fake college offer letter” mess for no fault of theirs. Read more