He also alleged that he was asked to sign documents written in English and Thai without proper explanation.
What was meant to be a family vacation turned into a traumatic experience for a 30-year-old Indian man from Bathinda district, Punjab.
Tanveer Sidhu, a permanent resident of Canada, was allegedly detained overnight and deported from Thailand after his Indian passport could not be scanned at Phuket International Airport on December 19.
Sidhu, who lives in Calgary and works as a property manager, said Thai immigration officials stopped him when a technical issue prevented his passport issued by the Indian embassy in Canada from being scanned. Despite having previously travelled to countries such as the US, Dubai, Malaysia and Indonesia without any problems, he was denied entry into Thailand.
He was travelling with his wife and nearly two-year-old daughter, both Canadian citizens. While they were allowed to proceed to the baggage area, Sidhu was held back by immigration officials. He said his request for a manual passport check and verification using past visas was refused, and he was asked to contact the Indian embassy in Canada. According to him, his attempts to reach the embassy were unsuccessful.
Sidhu said he was later taken to a detention centre where 20–25 other people were being held. After repeatedly requesting permission to make a phone call, he was eventually allowed to contact a friend, who reached out to an ex-diplomat. Sidhu claimed that following a phone call received by Thai officials, their attitude towards him improved.
Although he was not released, Sidhu said the authorities agreed to deport him to India along with his wife and daughter. He also alleged that he was asked to sign documents written in English and Thai without proper explanation.
Sidhu said the incident has left him deeply shaken and has raised concerns about how technical issues and lack of coordination between authorities can severely affect international travelers, especially families with young children.
