Toronto: Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) has called on the government not to deport 150 Punjabi students who were asked by Canada’s Border Protection Agency to leave the country amid fake college admission papers.
The students, whose deportation order is scheduled for May 29, said they were duped by their immigration consulting agency in India, provided them with bogus documents while they were unaware of it.
Jenny Kwan, New Democratic Party (NDP) immigration critic said that currently, students who came to Canada for their university education are at risk of deportation.
“I wrote to the Immigration Minister Sean Fraser on May 25 to take immediate action to help these students who inadvertently obtained wrong travel documents,” she said.
Minister Fraser had earlier tweeted that he was focusing on identifying the culprits and not punishing the victims of fraudulent acceptance letters.
Welcoming Fraser’s response, Kwan said it was important that pending deportations be put on hold and called for an alternative route for the permanent status of the students.
According to the Canadian Border Services Agency, over 700 Indian students are reportedly facing deportation as their educational institution’s admission offer letters were found to be fake when they applied for permanent residency after completion of their student visa and required work experience.
Most of these students came to the country to study in 2018 and 2019.
According to media reports, Jalandhar-based agent Brijesh Mishra was responsible for providing fake admit cards, extorting thousands of dollars from students. He was booked by the Punjab Police and he is absconding.