Chicago: Harjit Kaur, a 73-year-old Sikh grandmother who had lived in California for more than three decades, was deported to India earlier this month after what advocates describe as degrading and inhumane treatment while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. Her removal has ignited outrage among Sikh organizations, immigrant rights groups, and elected officials who are calling for accountability and systemic reform.

Kaur, originally from Punjab, migrated to the United States in 1992 as a single mother with two sons. She built her life in the East Bay, working for decades in a local Indian clothing store and raising a family that now includes two grandsons and three granddaughters. Though her asylum appeals were denied, she continued to comply with ICE requirements, faithfully reporting to check-ins every six months for more than 13 years. According to her family, ICE had repeatedly assured her that she could remain in the U.S. under supervision until her travel documents were secured.

On September 8, Kaur attended a routine check-in at the ICE office in Hercules, California. Instead of being released as usual, she was detained and transported to the Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center in Bakersfield. Days later, without prior notice to her family or attorney, she was transferred across the country to a facility in Lumpkin, Georgia, before being placed on a chartered flight to India on September 19.

Her attorney, Deepak Ahluwalia, criticized ICE’s handling of the case, noting that Kaur had zero criminal history, posed no flight risk, and had family willing to facilitate her voluntary departure. “A 73-year-old grandmother with over 30 years in this country should never have been treated this way. She was denied the dignity of saying goodbye to her family and subjected to unnecessary suffering,” he said.

Advocacy groups allege Kaur endured multiple violations of basic standards of care while in detention. The Sikh Coalition stated she was shackled during transport, denied vegetarian meals consistent with her faith, and in some instances given nothing but an apple or ice despite dental issues. She was reportedly refused access to showers, hygiene supplies, and prescribed medication. Her attorney added that while held in Georgia, she was forced to sleep on a concrete bench or the floor for nearly three days, with no proper bedding provided.

“It is despicable that any human should be treated this way, and downright sickening that a 73-year-old woman was forced to endure it,” the Sikh Coalition said in a statement.

The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) also condemned ICE’s actions, calling the case “a stark reminder of the urgent need for accountability and humane treatment in our immigration system.” Community members echoed this outrage, with more than 200 people gathering at the El Sobrante Sikh Gurdwara earlier this month to protest her detention, holding signs that read “Bring Grandma Home.”

ICE officials defended the deportation, noting that an immigration judge had ordered Kaur’s removal in 2005 and that she had exhausted all appeals up to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. However, her family and supporters maintain that ICE’s refusal to allow a voluntary departure or even a brief farewell reflects a systemic disregard for compassion and human dignity.

For now, Kaur is in India, separated from the family she built in California. Sikh advocacy groups have pledged to continue pressing for reforms to ensure elderly and vulnerable detainees are treated with dignity and respect. Her story, they argue, is not just about one grandmother’s painful ordeal, but about the urgent need to transform an immigration system that too often overlooks humanity in the pursuit of enforcement.