Indian deportees from US who arrived in second batch claim ‘they were handcuffed’

A second batch of deportees, who landed at Amritsar airport from the US on Feb 15 night on the C-17 aircraft, claimed they were handcuffed with their legs chained during the journey.

One of the deportees, Daljit Singh said, "Our legs were chained and hands were also cuffed.”

He is a native of Kurala Kalan village in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district and was among 116 illegal Indian immigrants.

Singh, while talking to reporters said he was taken through the 'donkey route' — an illegal and risky pathway used by migrants to enter the US.

The deportees hailing from Punjab were taken to their homes in police vehicles after immigration and background checks.

The Haryana government also made transportation arrangements for the deportees from the state.

Many illegal immigrants deported in the first batch, most of them from Punjab, said they wanted to migrate to the US for a better life for their families but were duped by their agents.

Their dreams were shattered when they were caught on the US border and sent back in shackles.

The second batch of deportees includes 65 from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, two each from Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and one each from Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir.

Most of them are aged 18 to 30, as per the sources.

A third plane carrying 157 deportees is expected to land at the Amritsar airport on Feb 16, sources said.

(With PTI inputs)