14 youths sold to Pathan for Rs 2.73 lakh

moga: after the infamous malta boat tragedy, comes the reports of 14 punjabi sikh youth falling prey to the machinations of travel agents. of the 20 punjabi sikh youth intercepted and deported by the turkish and iranian governments recently, 14 have fallen in the hands of a pathan. this sordid story has been narrated by six youths, who managed to reach lahore and are now staying in gurdwara dera sahib.three of them were being medically treated.international bhai mardana yadgaari society president harpal singh bhullar,on monday, said that this had been conveyed to him by pakistan sikh gurdwara prabandhak committee president sham singh on telephone. bhullar said that sham singh informed him that 14 had been "purchased" by a pathan, who had received rs 2.73 lakh as payment from a turkish travel agent. bhullar, in a statement here, urged punjabi sikh youth against going to foreign countries using illegal means, as this caused great harassment not only to them but also to their parents.