The Indian nationals who were deported from the US aboard a military plane claimed that their hands and legs were shackled throughout the journey. Around 104 Indian nationals were deported aboard a C-17 Globemaster aircraft of the US Air Force for illegally arriving in the country. The aircraft landed at the Amritsar airport at 01:55 pm on Wednesday.
One of the deportees Jaspal Singh said that they were unshackled only when the aircraft landed in Amritsar. He also said that he was captured by the US Border Patrol on January 24 before being sent home. Singh also claimed that initially, they did not know where they were being taken.
"We thought we were being taken to another camp. Then a police officer told us that we were being taken to India. We were handcuffed and our legs were chained. The handcuffs and chains were taken off at the Amritsar airport," he told news agency PTI.
The deportee further claimed that he was defrauded by a travel agent who promised to send him to the US legally, adding the deal was finalised at ₹30 lakh.
Another deportee Harwinder Singh said he left for the US in August last year. Singh was taken to Qatar, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Nicaragua, and then Mexico. He, along with others, were taken to the US.
"We crossed hills. A boat, which was taking him along with other persons, was about to capsize in the sea but we survived," he told reporters. Harwinder said that his travel agent promised him that he would be taken to Europe first and then to Mexico, while adding he spent around ₹42 lakh to go to the US.
"Sometimes we got rice. Sometimes, we did not get anything to eat. We used to get biscuits," he said. Of these deportees, 33 each are from Haryana and Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, 3 each from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and 2 from Chandigarh.
The deportees also include 19 women and 13 minors, including a 4-year-old boy and 2 girls aged 5 and 7 years, respectively. After Trump assumed office as the US president, the country's law-enforcement agencies have launched a crackdown against illegal immigrants.