Jalandhar, March 11 -- The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has launched an investigation into the money trail linked to the 'donkey route' which surfaced after hundreds of Indian youths, including 131 from Punjab, were deported from the United States last month. The probe, initiated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), focuses on the role of travel agents and the financial transactions involved in facilitating illegal immigration of Indian youths to the US.

The ED's investigation is based on 19 FIRs registered across Punjab against travel agents, following complaints filed by the deportees. The central agency has summoned 11 deportees to its zonal headquarters in Jalandhar to gather detailed insights into the modus operandi ...