Trump govt deports second batch of Indians; to land in Amritsar on Feb 15

A US plane carrying 119 illegal immigrants is likely to land at Amritsar airport on Feb 15, the second such batch of Indians deported by the Trump government as part of a crackdown it resolved to carry out when it was sworn in last month.

According to official sources, the plane is expected to land at the airport around 10 pm on Feb 15.

Among the 119 illegal Indian immigrants, 67 hail from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Goa, Maharashtra and Rajasthan and one each from Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, they said.

Another US plane carrying deportees is also expected to land on Feb 16.

The development came days after a US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal Indian immigrants landed at the Amritsar airport last week. Of them, 33 each were from Haryana and Gujarat and 30 from Punjab.

Most of the deportees hailing from Punjab had said they wanted to migrate to the US for a better life for their families. However, their dreams were shattered when they were caught at the US border and brought back in shackles.

After Donald Trump assumed office as the US President, the country's law enforcement agencies have launched a crackdown against illegal immigrants.

Many people from Punjab and some other states, who entered the US through "donkey routes" — an illegal and risky pathway used by migrants to enter America or other illegal means by spending lakhs of rupees — are now facing deportation.

Several political leaders in Punjab had questioned the landing of a US aircraft in Amritsar.

"The BJP-led Central government wants to defame Punjab. Why does it not land in Gujarat, Haryana or Delhi?" Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said on Thursday while replying to a question on the likely arrival of another US plane carrying illegal immigrants.

Notably, the Punjab government had recently formed a special investigation team to probe the issue of illegal human trafficking following the deportation of Indian citizens domiciled in Punjab from the US.

The SIT has so far registered 10 FIRs against fraudulent immigration consultants on the statements of deportees, said a senior police official.

(PTI)