WSO Calls for Urgent Relief for International Students Facing Deportation

The World Sikh Organization of Canada has written to Canadian Immigration Minister Sean Fraser requesting urgent action to assist hundreds of Punjabi international students facing deportation due to fraudulent admission letters provided by dishonest Indian consultants.  The letter that was sent earlier today is below.

June 9, 2023

The Honourable Sean Fraser P.C., M.P.
Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

365 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 1L1

Dear Minister Fraser,

RE:  International Students Facing Deportation Due to Fraudulent Admission Letters

We are writing today with respect to the plight of hundreds of Punjabi international students who are facing deportation due to fraudulent admission letters provided by dishonest Indian consultants.  We request that you utilise your powers as per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to provide these students immediate relief on a humanitarian and compassionate basis and create an alternative path to permanent residence for them.

Our organization has been in touch with a number of students who have been the victims of fraud. Dishonest Indian consultants gave these students fraudulent letters of acceptance from educational institutions, without their knowledge, which were the basis of study visas that were granted to them.  These fraudulent letters were convincing enough to satisfy Canadian Immigration officials and the fraud was not caught at that time either. Canadian officials approved their entry into the country and have not been held accountable, shown remorse, or empathy in the time that has passed. 

These students and their families have spent their entire savings to study in Canada.  They have worked hard for several years to earn their education and build lives for themselves in this country.   These students are now being victimised again as they have lost the right to work in Canada and are paying thousands of dollars in legal fees to continue their lives here. The affected students are now facing deportation for a crime that they did not commit. 

Some students are facing imminent deportation this month. Lovepreet Mahal is one such student who is scheduled to be deported on June 13, 2023.  

The present situation is unjust and should shock the conscience of any fair person.  The plight of international students in Canada has long been ignored by all levels of government.  International students make important contributions to Canada but face exploitation at multiple levels and there have been few efforts to address these systemic issues.

We call on the Government of Canada to take the following steps:  

1. Immediately stop all pending deportations of affected international students;
2. Waive the findings of inadmissibility on the basis of misrepresentation against affected students and provide them with alternate pathways to permanent resident status;
3. Issuance of temporary work permits to the affected students during the ongoing decision-making process, enabling them to continue contributing to the Canadian economy and sustain their livelihoods, as they are currently depleting their savings;
4. A comprehensive investigation into the immigration agents, colleges, and other parties involved in defrauding students.

Anything short of these measures will destroy the lives and dreams of hundreds of international students who have already suffered for no fault of their own.  

Punishing the victims is not the right or just thing to do. 

Yours truly,

Tejinder Singh Sidhu
President
World Sikh Organization of Canada