AMRITSAR: A third aircraft from the United States carrying 112 Indian deportees landed at Amritsar’s Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport at 10:05 pm on Sunday, bringing the total number of deportees sent back to India since February 5 to 332. The latest arrival follows two previous flights over the weekend, which collectively returned 228 illegal Indian immigrants from the US.
Breakdown of Deportees
According to sources, the latest batch included:
- 44 individuals from Haryana
- 33 from Gujarat
- 31 from Punjab
- 2 from Uttar Pradesh
- 1 each from Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand
However, there was no official confirmation of the exact numbers.
The flight on Saturday night carried 116 deportees, with 65 from Punjab alone.
Political Reactions and Transportation Arrangements
After facing criticism for initially using jail vans to transport deportees, the Haryana government deployed a Volvo bus this time to pick up returnees. Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s administration—which had actively received the first two batches—did not send any representatives to the airport on Sunday.
Earlier, Punjab Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal had welcomed the first batch on February 5, and his cabinet colleague Harbhajan Singh ETO was present at the airport for the second flight’s arrival on Saturday. This time, however, no family members of the returnees were present at the airport.
Restraints and Deportee Treatment
The treatment of deportees has been a subject of concern. During the first deportation flight on February 5, all 104 individuals were handcuffed and shackled upon arrival. However, in the second flight, while men remained in restraints, women and children were spared.
Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann had urged the Centre to ensure better treatment of deportees and requested the diversion of the second flight to another airport. While the request was denied, authorities allowed the deportees to arrive at the main terminal instead of the cargo terminal as a concession.
With more deportations expected in the coming days, the treatment of returnees and the political handling of their arrival remain pressing issues.
