Over 700 Indian students have received deportation orders after their college admission letters were uncovered as bogus.
Immigration minister announces support for victims of educational scam.
Canada has taken steps to help those who have fallen victim to a fraudulent admission scheme, which is good news for international students. Over 700 Indian students have received deportation orders from the Canadian Border Security Agency (CBSA) after their college admission letters were uncovered as bogus.
Canada’s Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, has communicated that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is actively investigating these disturbing cases of falsified acceptance letters. He made it categorically clear that the government’s primary goal is to unmask and apprehend the architects of this scam, not to punish the innocent victims who fell prey to it.
“To be clear, our focus is on identifying culprits, not penalizing victims. Victims of fraud will have an opportunity to demonstrate their situation and present evidence to support their case,” Fraser affirmed in a recent tweet. He also emphasized his recognition of the significant contributions international students make to Canada, underscoring his commitment to backing them in their quest for justice.
Canada is acting in partnership with educational institutions to ensure the validity of admission letters at the time of application. This move comes as part of a wider crackdown on fraudulent schemes seeking to exploit students hoping to further their education abroad.
In a shocking revelation, several investigations pointed to a Jalandhar-based study abroad agency that had filed approximately 700 deceitful visa applications for students over a four-year period from 2018 to 2022.
Once these students arrived in Canada, they were turned away from their chosen institutions and forced to enroll in less prestigious colleges. Despite these setbacks, they completed their coursework and met work requirements, even proceeding to apply for Canadian permanent residency.
Amid this unfolding crisis, prominent voices in the education industry have expressed their solidarity with the affected students. Raghwa Gopal, CEO of M Square Media (MSM), a prominent player in global education management, voiced his support for the Canadian government’s initiative.
“It’s heartening to observe Canada’s empathetic response to these students, unfortunate victims of a sophisticated scam. Granting them a chance to defend their cases is a commendable stride towards justice,” Gopal remarked.
He also pointed out that this unfortunate incident could be a catalyst for a more robust review of international student admission processes. “This situation, though regrettable, presents a timely opportunity to scrutinize and strengthen the checks and balances inherent in international student admissions. In doing so, we can ensure such unfortunate incidents are curbed in the future.”
The situation took a grim turn when the CBSA scrutinized the grounds on which visas were awarded to these students. The revelation of fraudulent admission offer letters led to the issuance of deportation notices to each student, though not before affording them an opportunity for a hearing.
The series of investigations that followed the shocking discovery implicated a Jalandhar-based study abroad agency, which allegedly filed around 700 deceitful visa applications between 2018 and 2022.
Despite these allegations, the CBSA has maintained a skeptical stance toward the students’ claims of innocence, citing the absence of concrete evidence that an agent was solely responsible for all fraudulent documents.
In conclusion, Gopal expressed faith in the resilience of the international student community and their ability to recover from this setback. “I am confident that these students will overcome this adversity and continue to enrich the educational landscape of their host countries,” he noted.
Source : https://www.financialexpress.com/business/investing-abroad-good-news-canada-offers-reprieve-to-international-students-tricked-by-admission-fraud-3108912/
