‘Handcuffed, legs chained’: Second-batch US deportee reports same treatment

The second batch of deportees from the US, who landed in Amritsar late on Saturday (February 15) night, were also handcuffed and their legs bound in chains, according to one of the illegal migrants, Daljit Singh.

The news of such inhuman treatment of the first batch of deportees earlier this month had raised a hue and cry among the people and the Opposition, who asked why Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not taken up the subject with his “good friend” Donald Trump, the US President.

Hopes of better treatment dashed

While External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had stated in Parliament that the restraining of deportees has been practised by the US for more than a decade now, the government had let the US know that this kind of treatment could have been “avoided”.

Also read: Second plane from US carrying 104 deportees lands in Amritsar

After Modi’s just-concluded visit to the US at the invitation of Trump, which was reported to be quite positive, it was expected that the other deportees would be treated with more dignity. However, Daljit’s claim has dampened those hopes.

“Our legs were chained and hands were also cuffed,” Singh told reporters in Hoshiarpur.

Duped by agents

Singh, a native of Kurala Kalan village in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, was among the 116 illegal Indian immigrants who were brought back in a US aircraft on Saturday night.

Replying to a question, Singh said he was taken through the “dunki route” — an illegal and risky pathway used by migrants to enter the US.

Singh’s wife Kamalpreet Kaur alleged that her husband was deceived by a travel agent who promised him a direct flight to the US but instead took him via the “dunki route”.

She said a man from their village had arranged for a travel agent to facilitate Singh’s journey. The agent assured to take him to the US legally but later he was taken through multiple locations, raising suspicions about the legitimacy of his travel.

Also read: 'Could have been avoided': India tells US on deportation of illegal immigrants

Taken home in police vehicles

The C-17 aircraft that landed around 11.35 pm on Saturday was the second batch of Indians to be deported by the Donald Trump administration as part of its crackdown on illegal immigrants.

After immigration and background check, the deportees hailing from Punjab were taken to their homes in police vehicles at around 4.30 am Sunday.

The Haryana government also made transportation arrangements for the deportees from the state.

Another US plane expected today

Many from the first batch of illegal immigrants who landed in Amritsar on February 5 said they wanted to migrate to the US for a better life for their families, but were duped by their agents.

Their dreams were shattered when they were caught on the US border and sent back in shackles.

Of the fresh batch of deportees, 65 are from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, two each from Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and one each from Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

Also read: Gujarat: Ordeal for US deportees continues, police grilling leaves them in despair

Most of them are aged 18 to 30, according to news agency PTI.

A third plane carrying 157 deportees is expected to land at the Amritsar airport today (February 16).

(With agency inputs)