Amid fury in India over the way the United States deported a first batch of illegal Indian immigrants - 104 people were handcuffed and their legs shackled for a flight that lasted nearly a day - the US Border Patrol shared a video on X that showed deportees being led into the plane to bring them back.
USBP Chief Michael W Banks posted the 24-second video on X with a statement that said, "... successfully returned illegal aliens to India, marking the farthest deportation flight yet using military transport. This mission underscores our commitment to enforcing immigration laws..."
A combative 'warning' - "If you cross illegally, you will be removed" - accompanied the video.
Filmed late at night, the video - set to rousing and chest-thumping music, possibly to inspire 'patriotism' among American viewers - with the rear door of a C-17 transport plane opening and a large cargo pallet being loaded, followed by a long line of illegal migrants being marched on board.
As the video pans out, shackles can be seen on the migrants' legs, forcing a shuffled walk more commonly associated with hardened criminals and, perhaps, prisoners of war.
After the 'prisoners' are loaded, several American soldiers march on board and the camera shifts to inside the plane, where the 'prisoners' are strapped into seats before the plane taxis for take-off.
President Donald Trump's administration has turned, increasingly, to the military to carry out its immigration agenda, using its aircraft to deport migrants and opening its bases to house them, and this has been seen as the Republican leader's 'strong message' on his hardline immigration agenda.
That plane landed in Amritsar in Punjab late last night.
And as the 104 Indians emerged, so too did the horror stories.
Jaspal Singh, 36, from Punjab's Gurdaspur, said he paid Rs 30 lakh to an agent who promised him legal passage to the US. Instead, he was forced to take the 'donkey route', an illegal and often perilous path, which involves traveling first to a South American country, used by traffickers.
READ | Handcuffed, Thrown Around Like Boxes: Indian Migrants' US Nightmare
Harwinder Singh, from Punjab's Hoshiarpur, paid Rs 42 lakh to be trafficked through multiple countries: Qatar, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Nicaragua, and Mexico. "We walked for days... crossed mountains and nearly drowned. I saw one man die in the Panama jungle..." he said.
READ | "Walked 45Km, Saw Bodies On The Way": Indians Deported From US
The manner of these deportations triggered a furious response from opposition MPs in India, who have attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his administration, demanding a discussion in Parliament on the use of shackles and chains, and a formal response from the government.
READ | "Inhuman": Opposition's Shackles-And-Chain Protests Over Deportation
Led by the Congress' Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, many opposition MPs stood outside Parliament this morning waving placards that screamed 'humans, not prisoners' and with handcuffs and shackles to make their point.
Another Congress MP, Shashi Tharoor, outlined the opposition's position on this issue, saying, "If you're in the US illegally, the US has a right to deport you. And, if your identity as an Indian, is confirmed India has an obligation to accept you. However, it wasn't good to hear they were brought back in a military plane and handcuffed and so on... that was quite unnecessary."
Several other opposition leaders, such as Malvinder Singh of the Aam Aadmi Party, also criticised the use of shackles and chains, an issue that was also raised by Colombia after US deportation flights to that country were refused permission to land for not treating Colombian citizens decently.
In that case, Colombia and the US worked out a deal to allow illegal immigrants to be brought back from America by Colombian military planes. That point was flagged by Ms Gandhi Vadra, who told reporters outside Parliament, "Couldn't we have sent our own aircraft to bring them back? Is this how humans are behaved with? They are sent back handcuffed and shackled? PM should answer."
The government has, so far, refused to set aside scheduled business for the discussion demanded by the opposition, but External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made a statement in the House this afternoon.
READ | "Process Of Deportation Not New": Jaishankar On 104 Indians Sent Back
Meanwhile, sources told NDTV the government is considering a new law to ensure migrants' safety.
READ | India Mulling New Law For Migrants' Safety Amid Deportation Row
The tentatively titled 'Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2024' emerged from a report presented in Lok Sabha by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs on Monday.
With input from agencies
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