Opposition launched a scathing attack on the Centre over the deportation of 104 Indian nationals, questioning the government as to why they did not bring the citizens back on its own terms.

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A US military aircraft with 104 illegal Indian immigrants aboard, landed in Amritsar on Wednesday (Feb 5).

This is the first batch of Indians deported by the Donald Trump administration as part of a crackdown against illegal immigrants.

The Indian government has justified its stance, pointing to international commitments, but opposition leaders claim it's not doing enough to safeguard Indian citizens from purported mistreatment.

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Shortly after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke in the Parliament over the issue on Thursday (Feb 6), Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale and Aam Aadmi Party's Sanjay Singh highlighted that the Indian government had previously arranged special flights to evacuate its citizens safely from the crisis zones.

"We are the fifth largest economy in the world and soon we will become 'Vishwa Guru'. As 'Vishwa Guru', our citizens are being shackled in chains when countries like Colombia, which doesn't even figure in the top 10, can send an aircraft and bring their citizens back with dignity. What stops our government from sending an aircraft? We don't have a shortage of it," said Gokhale in Parliament. 

India has a history of conducting large-scale evacuations of its citizens during times of crisis. Notably, during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, New Delhi launched extensive evacuation efforts from multiple countries.

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Furthermore, India undertook mass evacuations from Ukraine following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, demonstrating its commitment to safeguarding its citizens abroad.

Taking into consideration the past instances, the opposition questioned as to why the flights were not arranged for the Indian nationals this time.

"How did the US military plane land on Indian soil? Why were our citizens brought in handcuffs?" Mr Singh asked in Parliament. 

"What baffles me is that the External Affairs Minister seems focussed on defending the US deportation policies rather than the interest of our citizens," said Gokhale. 

Also read: 'Policy to execute immigration laws against removable aliens': US Embassy defends deportation of Indians

'Engaging with US to ensure deportees are not mistreated,' says Jaishankar

Jaishankar, on Thursday (Feb 6), said that it is the obligation of all the countries to take their nationals back if they are found to be residing illegally.

He said that the government is ensuring that the returning deportees are not mistreated.

"We are of course engaging the US government to ensure the returning deportees are not mistreated in any manner during the flight," he said.

"At the same time the House will appreciate that our focus should be on strong crackdown on the illegal migration industry, while taking steps to ease visas for the legitimate travellers," Jaishankar added.  

The External Affairs Minister stated that all embassies and ambassadors have been instructed to ensure students' safety.

"Depending on the situation, we have been very sympathetic, very responsive, all embassies and all ambassadors have been told to take a special interest in the welfare of the students... I want to assure that the welfare of students is something very close to the government's heart. Every embassy today is very proactive in that regard," Jaishankar said.

(With inputs from agencies)