AHMEDABAD: AC Patel from Gujarat had become Mohammad Najir Hussain of Pakistan – but only for a moment. And in that moment, he had belonged nowhere at all.
Patel’s passport bore Hussain’s name and nationality, but American authorities saw through the deception. The man who claimed to be Hussain was unmasked. Patel arrived at Delhi airport on February 12 via flight AA-292 after US authorities sent him back to India.
American agencies have intensified their crackdown on undocumented Indians following Donald Trump’s new term since January, targeting immigrants living illegally in US and deporting them home. In the past month alone, three flights packed with Indian deportees – including 74 Gujaratis – have landed in India after being expelled by US authorities.
Patel’s real troubles had only just begun. Delhi police arrested him on arrival. He faces multiple serious charges, including cheating by impersonation, and misuse of passport. What stunned Indian immigration officials was the Pakistani passport. Not just any forged document, but an actual lost passport that belonged to Hussain.
Cornered, Patel confessed. He had paid an agent in Dubai to forge his identity, swapping his Gujarat roots for a Pakistani character, just to secure a spot on a flight to US.
Patel’s real passport had expired in 2016 and instead of renewing it, he relied on human traffickers who provided him with fraudulent documents and facilitated his illegal journey via Dubai.
“Human smugglers pick passports that are strong for getting a US visa or randomly assign some UAE citizen’s passport to sneak into US,” a source said.