Two Indians among 28 green card holders charged with election fraud in C…

Two Indian nationals are facing criminal charges and potential imprisonment after being accused of unlawfully registering and casting ballots in the November 2024 presidential elections. Amandeep Kaur, 30, of Rancho Palos Verdes, and Kamlesh Navnitlal Shah, 67, of Sacramento, are among 28 lawful permanent residents snared in a sweeping federal crackdown in California. The United States Department of Justice announced the charges on Monday, framing the legal action as a vital defense of democratic integrity while plunging the accused into severe immigration jeopardy that threatens their paths to full American citizenship.

That action forms part of Operation Protect the Vote, a high-level joint initiative involving all four United States Attorney's Offices in California. The crackdown targets individuals holding green cards who registered to vote or cast ballots despite federal laws restricting the franchise strictly to full American citizens. The resulting legal documents charge the defendants with felonies including making false statements on naturalisation application forms and executing fraudulent voter registrations. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison, though legal experts note that actual sentencing depends on the specific nature of individual charges and trial outcomes.

Who are the defendants and what specific allegations do they face?

Court documents released by the Department of Justice outline distinct timelines for the two Indian nationals implicated in the sweep. Amandeep Kaur, who was actively pursuing the path to attain United States citizenship from her home in Rancho Palos Verdes, allegedly registered as a voter in December 2022 before casting her ballot in the November 2024 presidential election. Kamlesh Navnitlal Shah took a different route in Sacramento, allegedly registering to vote on the exact day of the November 2024 general election and casting his ballot immediately.

Beyond Kaur and Shah, the broader group of 28 defendants includes citizens from Mexico, Pakistan, the Philippines, Guatemala, El Salvador, Canada, and Cambodia. Law enforcement carried out early-morning raids across California that resulted in 11 arrests, though federal authorities have not publicly clarified whether Kaur and Shah were among those physically taken into custody. The charges against the wider cohort bring the total number of individuals prosecuted by the Department of Justice for election-related misconduct this year to approximately 90, a figure that includes 50 people specifically accused of voting as non-citizens.

Why is the federal government targeting California now?

The timing of these charges coincides with an escalating political and legal battle between the Trump administration and California election officials. Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter briefed reporters in Los Angeles to explain that all 28 defendants appeared on a sensitive list of more than 20,000 suspicious individuals who were found to be improperly registered as voters without holding citizenship. The Justice Department handed that list over to California election officials just a week prior to the announcement.

Federal authorities argue that California officials refused to examine the list or verify the citizenship of the registrants before mail-in ballots are counted. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated, California is mailing ballots to noncitizens, and they are refusing to comply with federal law, which makes it a crime for noncitizens to vote. To force the state's hand, the Justice Department has asked a federal court to prevent California and Los Angeles County from processing ballots returned by individuals on the disputed list.

How are state officials and legal experts responding?

California authorities have pushed back firmly against the federal demands and methodology. State officials argue that the federal government has failed to provide sufficient evidence proving that the 20,000 individuals on the list are indeed non-citizens. They warn that withholding or refusing to count ballots could violate state and federal law while disenfranchising eligible voters who happen to be caught up in administrative errors.

Election law experts have also urged caution, noting that sporadic cases of non-citizen voting do not establish a widespread phenomenon. Analysts warn that aggressive efforts to purge or scrutinize voter rolls risk removing eligible citizens and undermining public confidence in election outcomes. More than 227 million registered voters participated nationwide in the November 2024 election, making the scale of the federal investigation a tiny fraction of the total electorate.

What does this mean for green card holders seeking citizenship?

For lawful permanent residents, the legal fallout extends far beyond criminal courtrooms into the realm of immigration status. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services policy dictates that unlawful voter registrations, voting, and false claims to citizenship place an applicant's eligibility for naturalization under immediate scrutiny. Immigration law firms note that even when individuals claim honest mistakes or language barriers, federal agencies routinely issue notices of intent to deny citizenship applications.

Our client accompanied her U.S. citizen spouse to a polling location. According to her account, she informed an election worker that she was not a U.S. citizen. Krilchev.com

That past case, highlighted by immigration attorneys to illustrate current risks, demonstrates that USCIS frequently rejects naturalization applications following accidental voter participation regardless of sworn declarations, good moral character evidence, or explanations of limited English proficiency. With federal authorities vowing to press forward with prosecutions, the central question remains whether California will be compelled to overhaul its voter verification procedures before the courts resolve the fate of the disputed registrations.