Ahmedabad: US President-elect Donald Trump has reignited the national conversation on illegal immigration, pledging to oversee the largest deportation operation in American history on his first day in office. This announcement comes as the Biden-Harris administration faces criticism over immigration policies, with over 11 million undocumented immigrants currently in the US, 80 percent of whom have been in the country for over a decade.
While much of the focus is on migrants from Latin America, an increasing number of illegal immigrants are arriving from India, particularly from Gujarat. Despite increased border security, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that 90,415 Indian nationals attempted to enter the country illegally during FY 2024, with nearly half being from Gujarat.
From October 2023 to September 2024, a total of 2.9 million illegal immigrants were apprehended at the US borders, including 43,764 Indians at the Canadian border, the highest number on record. Since October 2020, nearly 170,000 Indian migrants have been detained at US land borders, making them the largest group from outside the Western Hemisphere.
One of the most heartbreaking incidents linked to Gujarat’s illegal immigration network is the Dingucha case, which illustrates the dangers migrants face. On January 19, 2022, the Patel family from Dingucha—Jagdish, his wife Vaishali, and their children Vihangi and Dharmik—tragically froze to death during a blizzard while trying to cross the US-Canada border into Minnesota. They had traveled to Toronto on visitor visas before embarking on their perilous journey.
Two men, Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel and Steve Anthony Shand, are charged with orchestrating the smuggling operation. Patel is identified as the mastermind, while Shand, hired to drive migrants across the border, faces charges of human trafficking, conspiracy, and culpable homicide in Minnesota.
In January 2024, Gujarat Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against 14 immigration agents accused of running a fraudulent scheme promising job opportunities in the US. The case may uncover the mastermind behind this operation and has led to investigations into travel agents who charged exorbitant fees for their services.
The FIR was filed by the Gujarat Police’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) in Gandhinagar after the grounding of a Dubai-Nicaragua flight in France, which was carrying 66 passengers and was suspected of human trafficking. The Airbus A340, carrying 303 Indians, was halted on December 21, 2023, exposing a widespread immigration racket involving private companies and agents facilitating illegal journeys to the US and Canada by routing travelers through Europe and South America. This complex route, known as the “donkey route,” involved creating fake documents and misleading immigration records.
The allure of the US for Gujaratis is significant; they make up about 20 percent of all Indians in America, with a high concentration in areas like Jersey City, New Jersey, and Edison, New York—often referred to as “Little Gujarat.” These regions serve as cultural and economic hubs for the diaspora, with Gujaratis owning about 22,000 of the 53,000 hotels in the US.
The reasons behind the perilous journeys of Gujaratis are complex. Experts note that economic disparities and limited job opportunities in Gujarat drive many to seek better prospects abroad. The well-established Gujarati community in the US provides a robust support system, making the American Dream seem within reach.
However, many migrants resort to illegal channels, paying traffickers, known as “agents,” hefty sums for promises of safe passage through dangerous routes, often via Mexico or Canada. Tragically, some do not survive these treacherous journeys, as evidenced by recent fatalities at the US-Mexico border.
While Gujaratis in the US have earned a reputation for hard work and entrepreneurship, illegal migration casts a shadow on the broader diaspora’s image and fuels political debates. Trump’s promise of mass deportations could significantly impact undocumented Gujaratis, many of whom have lived in the shadows for years.