Visa racket busted in US, several Indians stare at deportation

Washington, January 31

Several foreigners, including from India, face deportation from the US after authorities busted a “pay to stay” visa racket and arrested eight persons on charges of fraudulently facilitating at least 600 immigrants to illegally remain in the country.

In late-night and pre-dawn raids, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested eight foreigners — all of whom are either Indian nationals or US-Indian — for aiding foreign nationals to remain in the US illegally by actively recruiting them to enrol into a fake university in Farmington Hills in Metro Detroit.

Without the knowledge of the conspirators, the university was operated by special agents of the Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) as part of an undercover operation, from a small building in Detroit area. Information made available on the website of this university in particular those related to admissions leaves a lot of questions.

Simultaneously, the ICE also has started detaining foreign students of this fake university and started the process of their deportation.

“Vast majority” of those arrested and detained are Indian nationals, an ICE official said. “Special agents from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations arrested eight on criminal charges,” the official said. In their late 20s or early 30s, those arrested by the ICE include Barath Kakireddy, Suresh Kandala, Phanideep Karnati, Prem Rampeesa, Santosh Sama, Avinash Thakkallapally, Aswanth Nune, and Naveen Prathipati. Six of them were arrested in Detroit, the other two in Virginia and Florida.

“We are getting in touch with US authorities to extend consular assistance to those affected,” MEA’s Raveesh Kumar said in Delhi. — PTI

New H-1B rule out 

• The US has announced a new H-1B rule from April under which priority would be given to foreign workers with advanced degrees from American universities
• The final rule reverses the order by which the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) selects H-1B petitions under the regular cap and the advanced degree exemption
• Among other things, it introduces an electronic registration requirement for petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions