NEW DELHI — A 73-year-old Sikh woman from Punjab, Harjit Kaur, was among 131 deportees flown back to India from the United States on Thursday, in what lawyers and community advocates are calling a harsh and unnecessary crackdown on long-term residents.
Kaur, who lived in East Bay, California, since 1992 after arriving as a single mother with two sons, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during a routine check-in — something she had complied with every six months for more than 13 years.
Her lawyer, Deepak Ahluwalia, said Kaur endured difficult conditions in detention. He alleged she was nearly shackled and handcuffed until one officer intervened because of her age, and that she was denied a bed, forced to sleep on the floor despite having undergone double knee surgery, and not provided with a shower. Instead of being placed on a commercial flight, she and others were transported on a chartered ICE plane.
Kaur’s deportation has drawn criticism in the U.S. Congressman John Garamendi, a Democrat from California, condemned President Donald Trump’s administration for targeting “a 73-year-old woman — a respected member of the community with no criminal record.”
Kaur’s asylum request was denied in 2012, yet her family insists she remained law-abiding. “She’s eligible and always applied for a work permit. She pays taxes every year. She doesn’t even have, from my knowledge, any violations for driving,” her daughter-in-law, Manji Kaur, said.
Kaur had even sought travel documents from the Indian consulate in the past, signaling her willingness to comply with legal requirements, but her request was rejected.
Her case underscores the human toll of the Trump administration’s escalating deportation drive, which has already sparked controversy in India after images surfaced earlier this year of deported Indian citizens shackled on flights