Thu Feb 06 10:33:00 UTC 2025: ## India Condemns US Treatment of Deported Migrants Amidst Political Furor

**New Delhi, February 6, 2025** – India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar today defended the US’s long-standing practice of deporting illegal Indian immigrants, while acknowledging concerns over the treatment of deportees. His statement in the Rajya Sabha followed strong opposition criticism and came just days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Jaishankar confirmed that hundreds of Indians are deported annually, with numbers ranging from 530 in 2012 to over 2,000 in 2019. He emphasized the need to discourage illegal immigration and stressed that all countries have an obligation to repatriate their citizens found living illegally abroad. While admitting that India is engaging with the US to ensure humane treatment, he stated that US authorities reported attending to the needs of deportees, including food, medical care and denied claims of mistreatment of women and children.

However, this statement failed to quell the outrage from opposition parties. Videos released by US Border Patrol showing shackled Indian migrants aboard a US military transport plane sparked fury. Deportees reported being handcuffed for extended periods and denied restroom breaks, leading to accusations of human rights violations. One deportee, Jaspal Singh, recounted paying a significant sum to an agent who promised legal passage to the US, only to be trafficked illegally.

Opposition MPs, including those from the Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress, and Aam Aadmi Party, staged protests, demanding a more humane repatriation process. They pointed to Colombia’s response to similar deportations, where the Colombian government chartered its own planes to return citizens with dignity after an initial standoff with the US involving the use of US military aircraft. MP Saket Gokhale questioned why India, as the world’s fifth-largest economy, could not similarly charter planes.

The controversy surrounding the deportations and the harsh treatment of migrants has added a layer of complexity to the upcoming Modi-Trump meeting scheduled for February 12th. The use of military aircraft for deportations, a practice reportedly escalating under the Trump administration, is being viewed by some as a hardline immigration stance by the US.

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