New Delhi, Sept 6: Nearly 8000 Indian Americans are facing deportation after US President Donald Trump scrapped the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that protected undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children. US Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that the DACA program had been rescinded, potentially putting 800,000 illegal immigrants at the danger of deportation. Donald Trump had pledged to kill the DACA programme in his poll campaign.
Implemented in 2012 by then US President Barack Obama, the DACA programme essentially provided a legal status for young immigrants who entered the United States as minors or a renewable two-year term to pursue education or jobs without fear of deportation. From now onwards, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will stop accepting new DACA applications and review case by case pending requests.
All current recipients whose DACA benefits expire before March of next year may renew their request before October 5, said the DHS memorandum. In a statement, White House said Congress has six months — until March 5, 2018 — to come up with a long-term solution. In a written statement, President Donald Trump said he is looking forward to working with Congress to finally address all of these issues “in a manner that puts the hardworking citizens of our country first.”
