Some Indian students facing deportation from Canada receive stay orders: Sources
New Delhi(PTI): Some Indian students in Canada facing the prospect of deportation on charges of obtaining visas using fake admission letters have received "stay orders" from Canadian authorities, government sources said on Sunday.
India has repeatedly been urging Canadian authorities to be fair and take a humanitarian approach since the students were allegedly victims of some agents. The sources also said that the actual number of Indian students facing deportation from Canada is much less than 700.
"Most of these students had gone to Canada during 2017-2019. After completing their studies, some of them obtained work permits, while others continue to study in Canada," said a source.
India has been taking up the matter with Canadian authorities, in Canada and in New Delhi. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also took up with matter with his Canadian counterpart.
"Canadian authorities were repeatedly urged to be fair and take a humanitarian approach since the students were not at fault," said the source cited above.
"It was also pointed out that there were gaps in the Canadian system and a lack of diligence, owing to which the students were granted visa and also allowed to enter Canada," it added.
In the last few days, Canadian parliamentarians across political parties have spoken in support of the students. Immigration Minister Sean Frasier has indicated that Canada is actively pursuing a solution for international students who are facing uncertainty, the sources said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged the need for fair treatment of the students.
"Some students have recently received stay orders on their deportation notices," the source said.
"It is welcome that the consistent efforts by the government of India has been instrumental in the Canadian government adopting a humane approach and taking on board the perspective of the students," the source said.
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Traffic fraud: Fake 'no-entry' sticker racket busted in Delhi, mastermind among 3 held
New Delhi (PTI): Police here have busted a crime syndicate involved in traffic fraud and extortion, arresting three people including the alleged mastermind who sold fake stickers to help commercial vehicles bypass no-entry restrictions, an official said on Saturday.
The police said they dismantled a third organised syndicate linked to traffic-related frauds, with the arrest of Rinku Rana alias Bhushan, his associate Sonu Sharma and Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, who was also connected to another extortion syndicate.
According to the police, Rinku Rana was running a well-organised network that facilitated the movement of commercial goods vehicles during restricted hours by selling fake 'marka' or stickers for Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 per vehicle every month. The stickers were falsely projected as authorisation to evade traffic challans.
During raids, the police recovered Rs 31 lakh in cash, property documents worth several crores of rupees, over 500 fake stickers and six mobile phones allegedly used to operate the syndicate.
The crackdown followed a complaint filed by a traffic police officer in April this year after a commercial vehicle tried to evade checking by producing a fake sticker claiming exemption from enforcement action.
Investigation revealed that social media groups were being used to coordinate the illegal movement of vehicles and alert drivers about traffic police checkpoints, police said.
"A parallel system was being run to cheat drivers and vehicle owners while undermining traffic enforcement. On the basis of evidence, provisions related to organised crime under the BNS were invoked," a senior police officer said.
Sonu Sharma, the police said, managed social media groups through which stickers were sold and real-time alerts were circulated regarding traffic police movement. He also acted as a link between Rana and drivers operating in the field.
In a related development, Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, an associate of Rajkumar alias Raju Meena, who was earlier arrested under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), was also apprehended.
Mukesh allegedly helped extort money from transporters and was involved in blackmailing traffic police personnel by recording enforcement actions, the police said.
Investigators alleged the syndicate led by Rajkumar deployed drivers to deliberately violate traffic rules and secretly record police officials during challans, later using manipulated videos to extort money under threat of false allegations.
The police said that in total, eight accused belonging to three different organised crime syndicates linked to traffic frauds and extortion have been arrested so far.
Further investigation is underway to trace the remaining members, conduct financial probes, and analyse digital evidence recovered during the raids, officials added.
