Two Indian nationals among 28 green card holders charged with election fraud in California

• Two Indian nationals among 28 green card holders charged with election fraud in California
• Justice Department alleges they registered and voted in the 2024 election
• Charges carry a maximum five-year federal prison sentence
• About 90 people charged with election misconduct this year before Monday

TWO INDIAN nationals are among 28 green card holders charged with election fraud in California, the US Department of Justice said Monday.

The department alleges that Amandeep Kaur, 30, and Kamlesh Shah, 67, fraudulently registered to vote and cast ballots in the November 2024 election.

Eleven of the 28 defendants were arrested in early morning raids across the state as part of “Operation Protect the Vote,” the department said. It was not immediately clear whether Kaur or Shah was among those arrested.

The allegations

Shah, a Sacramento resident, registered to vote on the day of the November 2024 general election and voted that day, the Justice Department alleges.

Kaur, a Rancho Palos Verdes resident who is seeking US citizenship, registered to vote in December 2022 and voted in the 2024 election, it alleges.

“All 28 foreign nationals charged are lawful permanent residents (LPRs), or ‘green card’ holders. Although LPRs have legal immigration status in the United States, they are not US citizens and are not permitted to vote in US elections,” the department said.

The charges include making false statements on a naturalization application, and some defendants also face charges of fraudulent voter registration. Both are felonies carrying a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison.

From a list of 20,000

“Each of the 28 defendants charged today appears on the list of more than 20,000 likely noncitizen registrants we provided to California election officials last week,” Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter told reporters in Los Angeles.

Before Monday, the Justice Department had charged about 90 people this year for various types of election misconduct, including 50 accused of voting as noncitizens. More than 227 million Americans were registered to vote in the 2024 presidential election.

(With inputs from PTI)