Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann went all guns blazing against the Centre over the landing of another US plane with illegal Indian immigrants in Amritsar. Accusing the BJP of defaming Punjab, Mann said that the Centre wants to portray that only Punjabis travel through donkey routes and are illegal immigrants who have been deported from the US. Mann also demanded the MEA and MHA change the route of the plane and make it land at Delhi Airport, Hindon Airport or Ahmedabad Airport.
Mann's stern reaction came as another US plane carrying 119 illegal Indian immigrants is set to land at the Amritsar airport today at around 10 pm. This will be the second flight carrying Indian deportees which will land at the Amritsar airport. The deportees comprise 67 persons from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Rajasthan and Maharashtra, and one each from Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. A US C17 Military aircraft on February 5 landed in the city carrying 104 illegal Indian immigrants.
Lashing out at the Centre, Mann raked up Sheikh Hasina's arrival in India and asked why the plane carrying the deportees could not land at the Hindon airport. Mann also accused the BJP of conspiring against Punjab and said that the Centre does not allow international flights to operate from Amritsar claiming it is "not suitable".
"They don't let international flights operate from Amritsar, claiming that it is not suitable for it, so why are flights coming in from the US now?. I will strictly oppose this. I demand to the MEA and the MHA that the plane is still onboard, change the route and make it land in Delhi, Hindon or Ahmedabad," Bhagwant Mann said.
#WATCH | Amritsar | Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann says, "There is a conspiracy to defame Punjab and Punjabis... The first plane landed in Amritsar... Now, a second plane (carrying Indian citizens who allegedly illegally migrated to the US) will land in Amritsar... The MEA should tell… pic.twitter.com/dJfn6Abx0V
— ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2025
"Sheikh Hasina landed in Hindon. Ghaziabad. Why can these (Indian citizens who allegedly illegally migrated to the US) be landed in Hindon? They should be landed in the National Capital; we will bring our people from there. Amritsar is being chosen deliberately to portray that only Punjabis are illegal migrants. BJP always conspires to defame Punjab," Bhagwant Mann added.
Mann further questioned the criteria of the Ministry of External Affairs to choose Amritsar for the landing of the US plane carrying deportees. He also took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who returned from the US on Friday, asking whether the deportation "was a gift from Donald Trump"?
"There is a conspiracy to defame Punjab and Punjabis. The first plane landed in Amritsar. Now, a second plane will land in Amritsar. The MEA should tell the criteria based on which Amritsar was selected to land the aircraft. You select Amritsar to defame Punjab," Bhagwant Mann said.
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"At the time when PM Modi and Trump were meeting, they (US authorities) must have been putting shackles on our people. Is this the gift Trump has given? America's military planes are landing in Amritsar, and an enemy country, Pakistan, is right next to it. Lahore is 40 km from there. What kind of foreign policy is this?," Mann asked.
Dismissing Bhagwant Mann's allegations, the BJP instead accused him of politicising the matter for his personal and political gains. "Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann should avoid doing politics on such sensitive issues. AAP leaders do not care about the security of the country; they only do politics," BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal said, as quoted by NDTV.
"Of all the people deported so far, 67 are from Punjab and rest are from other states. By politicising this, the CM is degrading his own state. What action has he taken against those who sent these people through illegal immigration? They are taking huge sums of money and sending the children to other countries. Immigration is the biggest industry in Punjab. What action has been taken against illegal immigration centres?" Punjab BJP Vice President Fatehjung Singh Bajwa said.
#WATCH | Chandigarh: On Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann's statement, Punjab BJP Vice President Fatehjung Singh Bajwa says, "Of all the people deported so far, 67 are from Punjab and rest are from other states. By politicising this, the CM is degrading his own state. What action has he… pic.twitter.com/uKyQnxMzUD
— ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2025
"This issue should not be politicised. The families of Punjab are already under pressure. Nothing was done when they were leaving and now the CM is making it political. They went there because of unemployment. What did the Punjab government do for employment? No industry is entering or investing in Punjab. The CM should rehabilitate them by offering them loans for opening startups," he added.
US Deportation Row:
The second plane which will land at Amritsar airport today, follows the deportation of 104 individuals earlier on February 5, marking another phase in the US government's intensified crackdown on undocumented immigrants. According to US authorities, deportations will continue every other week till all illegal immigrants are returned to their home countries.
The deportations come in the immediate wake of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the United States, where he met President Donald Trump to discuss key bilateral issues, including immigration. PM Modi reaffirmed India's commitment to repatriating verified Indian nationals while stressing the need to combat human trafficking networks that exploit vulnerable migrants.
With further deportations expected in the coming months, immigration enforcement is set to remain a crucial issue in US-India relations, shaping policies on border security, migrant rights, and diplomatic cooperation.