Almost half of the United States deported Indians on five commercial flights in Panama from February 20 to March 2 belonged to Punjab, according to external minister of the Kirti Vardhan Singh Union.
Of 55 illegal immigrants deported on these commercial flights, 27 (49%) belonged to Punjab, 22 (40%) to Haryana, 3 (5%) to Uttar Pradesh, 2 (4%) to Gujarat, and 1 (2%) to Rajasthan, said Singh in a written response to a consultation of SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal in the Lok Sabha.
In general, 388 illegal immigrants from India, including 333 in military aircraft, have been deported since Donald Trump became president of the United States, with 153 (40%) of Punjab.
The five commercial flights, which land in Delhi on 20, 23, 27, February 28 and March 2, showed a fluctuating number of Punjabi deportees. The February 20 flight had two immigrants from Haryana and none of Punjab, while the February 23 flight led to 12 immigrants, including four Punjab. The February 27 flight brought 11 deportees, including eight from Punjab, while the February 28 flight had nine immigrants, including six Punjab. The flight of March 2 took 21 immigrants, including nine from Punjab.
Previously, 333 illegal immigrants were deported from the USA. In three military planes on February 5, 15 and 16, and of these, 126 (38%) were from Punjab, 110 (33%) of Haryana, and the rest of other states, the minister declared.
The minister clarified that the landing sites for repatriation flights are chosen according to the operational convenience, the airspace routes and the proximity to the final destinations of the deportees.
He said that the Government has expressed concerns with US authorities regarding the treatment of deportees, particularly the use of restrictions. Although the US procedures allow restrictions, there were guarantees that there are no women or children chained on flights that landed on February 15 and 16. “This has been confirmed and registered by our agencies after interviewing those deported upon arrival in India,” said the minister.
The parliamentarians Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Selvaganapathy TM had asked questions about landing permits for US military aircraft, the selection of Amritssar as a landing site, equitable media coverage, the distribution of deportees in all states and the treatment of deportees.