90 more students, mostly from India, held from fake US university
Washington: Federal law enforcement agencies have arrested 90 foreign students, mostly from India, enrolled in a fake university established by the US government to check immigration fraud, a media report has said.
The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has so far arrested more than 250 students, who were lured to enroll in the now-closed University of Farmington in the Detroit metropolitan area by the Department of Homeland Security.
The ICE had in March arrested 161 students from the fake university established by it. When it was closed in March, there were 600 students, mostly Indians, enrolled in it.
The latest news of arrest of additional 90 students in recent months, first reported on Tuesday by the 'Detroit Free Press', has resulted in outrage with #AbolishICE hashtag gaining ground on Twitter and other social media platforms on Wednesday.
According to an ICE spokesperson of the 250 students arrested so far, "nearly 80 percent were granted voluntary departure and departed the United States."
Of the remaining 20 percent, about half of them have received a final order of removal, the official was quoted as saying. Federal prosecutors claim that the students knew that this was a fake university as there were no classes. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a leading Democratic presidential candidate, described the move as "cruel".
"This is cruel and appalling," she said in a tweet. "These students simply dreamed of getting the high-quality higher education America can offer. ICE deceived and entrapped them, just to deport them," Warren said.
ICE had filed criminal charge sheet against eight recruiters. Seven of them have pleaded guilty. These eight recruiters have been indicted for conspiracy to commit visa fraud and harbouring aliens for profit by the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Students enrolled in the university, a significant number of whom were from India, came to the US legally on a valid visa issued by the US embassy in India.
The US "trapped the vulnerable people who just wanted to maintain (legal immigration) status," Rahul Reddy, a Texas attorney who represented or advised some of the students told Detroit Free Journal. "They prayed upon them," he alleged.
The fake university charged around USD 2,500 per quarter for graduate programme and the average cost is USD 1,000, the daily reported.
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Annamalai's remarks about Mumbai misconstrued for political gains, says BJP MLA
Mumbai (PTI): BJP MLA R Tamil Selvan on Monday defended party leader K Annamalai's remarks about Mumbai, saying his statements, aimed at highlighting the city's global importance, had been deliberately misconstrued for political gains.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) last week demanded that Annamalai be arrested for his remark that "Bombay is not a Maharashtra city".
While campaigning for the January 15 civic body elections last week, former IPS officer and ex-Tamil Nadu BJP president Annamalai had said, "People want a triple engine government. This is the only metro city in the country where a triple engine is possible. Modi is in Delhi, Fadnavis is the chief minister, and now Mumbai will have a BJP mayor. Mumbai is not a Maharashtra city but an international city."
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Talking to reporters, Selvan, who represents the Sion Koliwada assembly constituency, said, "Our leader Annamalai described Mumbai as a city respected across the world. What he wanted to say was that Mumbai is becoming the world's number one city, mainly because of the blessings of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Be it the Metro project, road construction or the provision of services, Mumbai has emerged as an important city on the global front. Annamalai was talking in this context."
The BJP leader's words were being distorted for political gains, he said.
"How can anyone separate Mumbai from Maharashtra? Not even a prime minister will be able to do it. Annamalai did not say those words out of disrespect. He was only saying that Mumbai has a global identity," he said.
Responding to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's "Rasmalai" jibe at Annamalai, Selvan said, "Raj Thackeray is a senior leader, and many respect him. I still respect him, but he should respect others as well. I am also from Tamil Nadu, but I have won the assembly elections thrice with the support of around 90,000 Marathi voters. They did not see my background."
The BJP gives tickets to people who serve the society, he said.
Selvan claimed that he had worked extensively in Maharashtra, even in rural areas, and invoked icons such as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar and Lokmanya Tilak in his speeches.
In a dig at his critics, the BJP MLA said, "Now people have seen who uses foul language against our chief minister, who works for the people's welfare. We oppose such use of foul language. CM Fadnavis will take appropriate action against such people."
