American dream turns sour

These are poignant stories of heartbreak and hope. Left by their parents, the teenaged Swati and the precocious Kunal and Kailash Nath are trying their best to get on with life.
The saddest thing is the abandonment of their parents is often not intentional. Tough anti-immigration laws have ensured that most parents feel frightened to leave the US (where they are currently living illegally) for fear of deportation.
Swati, whose parents have been in the US for the last five years, says life has been a nightmare for both her and her 18-year-old brother since. Her parents went to the US on a tourist visa, hoping to run their export business there.
However, those plans failed and currently, they both work in a hotel in New York. "These years have been very difficult. Though our parents call once or twice in a week, we can't share the minute details of our lives with them."
Swati and her brother stay with their grandparents but it clearly isn't enough. "Last year after my brother met with an accident, he was kept in a dark room for six months. Our parents used to call everyday and cry but they were helpless. If they ever try to come back, they will be deported."
Kunal, 13, is in a reverse situation. His parents, Ken and Sarita Shah, were running an inn in Utah when they were deported to India last July. Despite having stayed for over 16 years in the US, they will not be allowed back even for a visit. Since Kunal was born in the US, he was declared a citizen and allowed to stay back. His uncle D C Prasad is looking after him and running the inn.
In a twist of fate, Kunal will now represent Utah in a national spelling bee competition on May 30-31 in Washington. But, of course, his parents won't be there to support him. Admits Prasad,"He needs to live with his parents but he cannot do that. We try and make him feel stronger and better." Kunal says dealing with the separation is a daily challenge.
The number of undocumented Indians in the US has risen by 133% in 2001 to 2005. According to the law, people who want to stay in the US, go there on a tourist visa, apply for a green card and wait. If their visa period gets over, they have to come back and wait. But a number of Indians who are desperate to stay on avoid this process because of its lengthy nature. Result: they stay on undocumented and ergo are 'trapped' in the country.
Say US embassy officials, "If people go to the US on a tourist visa and overstay, they will be deported the moment they are caught. Some do try and marry American citizens in the hope they will get a green card but then also, they have to prove that it's a legal and genuine marriage. If the concerned authorities are not convinced, the person will be sent back."
This fear of being caught ensures fathers, mothers and sons grow up without meeting their families for long periods of time. Kailash Nath can testify to that. Nath has not seen his son Vikrant for eight years now. Vikrant went to Virginia in 1999 on a three-month tourist visa and overstayed. He wanted to work in a hotel but he chose to do a computer course and then started teaching children. Says the senior Nath,"When he was leaving we knew he would be gone for a long time, but we never expected it to be for so long. We are seeing him grow up in photographs. Now we don't have any hope that he will come back in the near future."
Vikrant, who has married an Indian girl there and has a son now, has shifted to Canada from where he is applying for a geen card. "I want to come back to India but my wife and son are here. I can't afford to risk my entry back to the States," he says.
The desire to avoid deportation is common, ensuring that illegal stay in the US is likely to continue. Meanwhile, many families will have to continue to hope and pray that one day they would be reunited with their relatives.