The US Department of Justice has announced that it is seeking to revoke the citizenship of Gurmeet Singh, an Indian-origin man who became a naturalised US citizen after hiding a previous conviction for rape.
The DOJ said Singh lied about his criminal history when he applied for US citizenship. He had previously kidnapped and sexually assaulted a female passenger in his taxi.
The incident occurred after the woman fell asleep in the backseat of his car. Singh allegedly drove her to a side street, where she awoke to find him on top of her, holding a knife to her throat. He reportedly warned her to stop resisting if she wanted to live, then bound, gagged, blindfolded, and raped her.
Singh became a US citizen on October 19, 2011, after hiding these acts during his naturalisation process. He was later convicted in May 2014 in New York of first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping as a sexually motivated felony and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Taking away citizenship or Denaturalisation can only happen through a federal court ruling. It is a complicated process and is used only when someone lied to get citizenship or committed serious crimes. People born in the US cannot lose their citizenship. Only naturalised citizens can.
Moreover, the Trump administration has reportedly told United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices to send 100 to 200 cases a month to the Justice Department for 2026, like the Singh one. For comparison, only about 120 cases were filed across the country between 2017 and 2025. The process puts pressure on the courts, but it helps protect the value of US citizenship according to some Republicans.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a press release: “This Department of Justice will continue to strip citizenship from those who commit heinous crimes and conceal them during the naturalization process. American citizenship is a great and sacred privilege that must be earned honestly.”
US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. also weighed in on Singh's case: “The defendant in this case secured U.S. citizenship through deceit, and on the heels of committing the heinous crimes of rape and kidnapping. This case, brought to strip the defendant of citizenship that he did not earn and to which he was not entitled, demonstrates our Office’s commitment to protecting the American people and defending the sanctity of U.S. citizenship.”
Singh’s case will now be heard in federal court, where a judge will decide whether the government has met the legal standard required to revoke his citizenship.
