External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Thursday said that the Indian government was engaging with the US to ensure that undocumented immigrants who are being deported are not mistreated in any manner. Jaishankar made the comments in the Rajya Sabha amid the growing protest by the opposition over the inhumane treatment of Indians on the deportation flight that landed in Amritsar on Wednesday.
Jaishankar said that it was the obligation of all countries to take back their nationals if they are found to be living illegally abroad and reminded the opposition that this was not the first time undocumented Indians had been deported from the US.
"We know that 104 people came back yesterday. We are the ones who verified their nationality... Let us not make out as though this is a new issue. This is an issue which has been happening earlier," he said.
On the issue of the deportees being shackled, Jaishankar said US authorities were following the SOP and added that women and children were not restrained.
"The SOP of deportation by aircraft used by ICE, which has been effective since 2012, provides for the use of restraint," he said.
Also read: Video shows handcuffed and chained illegal immigrants from India boarding deportation flight
The minister also said that the government was engaging with the US to ensure that deported Indians are not mistreated.
"We are engaging with the US government to ensure that the deportees are not mistreated in any manner. At the same time, the House will appreciate that our focus should be on the strong crackdown against the illegal immigration industry. On the basis of information provided by the deportees, law enforcement agencies will take necessary, preventive and exemplary action against the agents and such agencies," he said.
A total of 104 Indians who were caught illegally entering the country were deported by the US on a C-17 military aircraft. Videos and images of the Indian nationals being shackled throughout their flight have triggered massive protests on social media.
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