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Indian documentary filmmaker Vijay Kumar, who is being quizzed by the Canadian authorities after his detention at the Vancouver airport, fears that he may face a similar ordeal as he did in the US, where he was jailed for 20 days for carrying brass knuckles and 'jihadi' literature.
"I got the same circumstance here in Canada when I reached the airport. Those people told me that I have a criminal background, so you can't enter Canada so we are going to deport you. I suffered the same thing in America, I was told the same thing. Then I told them that I am not a criminal, I just have a misdemeanour case in US," he told an Indian TV channel.
40-year-old Kumar flew to Vancouver from Houston, where he was sentenced to 20 days in prison after being arrested for carrying brass knuckles and 'jihadi' literature in luggage. In Canada, he was detained on Monday night and the authorities continued to hold him in a hotel instead of a jail, for further questioning.
Kumar said that while he is not being detained now, he is afraid he would face a similar ordeal as he did in the US."I have a valid visa and I got the option of voluntary departure from the US. I have a valid visa and hence I told them (Canadians) that you cannot deport me, I do not want to be deported," he told Times Now on phone.
"They then told me that I was under examination and they did not put me in jail. I was allowed to go to the hotel. They have seized my identity card and other legal documents. They told me that it would take another 2-3 days. I have been called everyday and they have interrogated me every day in detail."
Asked why he did not return to India immediately after his release from the Houston prison, he claimed he was afraid to return home. The filmmaker, a resident of Malad in Mumbai, was earlier held at the Houston airport on August 20. He had been invited to Houston to participate in a Hindu organisation's conference.Indian authorities said they had no information yet of Kumar's interrogation in Canada.