Amid uproar over claims of Indian nationals being deported from the US in handcuffs and chains, Michael W Banks, the Chief of US Border Patrol (USBP) has shared a video of "illegal aliens" being returned to India. 

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Taking to X, the USBP chief shared a 24-second video that shows people in handcuffs and shackles being escorted onto a plane. The video was posted along with the caption: "USBP and partners successfully returned illegal aliens to India, marking the farthest deportation flight yet using military transport. This mission underscores our commitment to enforcing immigration laws and ensuring swift removals."

"If you cross illegally, you will be removed," added Banks.

Watch video here:

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The video comes as the Press Information Bureau (PIB), the nodal press agency of the Government of India fact-checked purported images showing shackled Indians circulating on the internet, labelling them "fake".

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Indian press nodal agency's fact-check

In a post on its fact-check account X (formerly Twitter), PIB said that the image was "fake" and "does not pertain to Indians".

"A #Fake image is being shared on social media by many accounts with a claim that illegal Indian migrants have been handcuffed, and their legs chained while being deported by US."

"The image being shared in these posts does not pertain to Indians. Instead, it shows those deported to Guatemala," it added.

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Congress slams US

While the Government of India has yet to issue a formal statement on the disturbing visuals, the country's main opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC) on Thursday, slammed the "absolutely inhuman" deportation of Indian nationals from the United States. 

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, in a conversation with WION's sister publication, Zee News, slammed the treatment of Indians by the US and drew comparisons with Columbia. Tharoor said that while the US has the right to deport any illegal immigrants from its soil, it does not have the right to treat them like criminals.

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In January, Colombian President Gustavo Petro barred the US military aircraft carrying illegal Columbian citizens from landing, arguing that its people on board were being treated like criminals. Instead, he sent Columbian aircraft to bring back migrants while ensuring they were treated "with dignity".

Another Congress MP, Manish Tewari, in a conversation with news agency ANI, said he was "Absolutely anguished at the inhumane treatment which has been meted out to the Indians who have been deported from the United States of America and brought to Amritsar."

"They are not criminals. They may have illegally entered the US in search of a better life," he added. 

His statement comes as Jaspal Singh, one of the 104 deportees brought to India's Amritsar in a US aircraft on Wednesday claimed their hands and legs were cuffed throughout the journey.

(With inputs from agencies)