Could have been avoided: India on deportation of illegal immigrants in shackles
New Delhi, Feb 7 (PTI): India on Friday said it has registered concerns with the US over the deportation of illegal immigrants in shackles and conveyed that this kind of treatment could have been avoided.
The remarks of Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri came amid uproar over the deportation of illegal Indian immigrants by the US in handcuffs during their 40-hour flight onboard a military aircraft.
"We do make our concerns known to the United States that this kind of treatment can perhaps be avoided," the foreign secretary said in response to questions on the deportation.
Misri said there are as many as 487 presumed Indian citizens with final removal orders from the US authorities and details of 298 people have been shared with India.
He said the information shared by the US authorities was being verified.
He said the US policy of deporting illegal immigrants in restraints has been in place since 2012.
"I don't think there was any protest. We don't have any record of any protest having been made about it," the foreign secretary said to a question on whether India had registered its protest on deportation of illegal immigrants in shackles in 2012.
He referred to the statement by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Parliament on Thursday.
"The description by the EAM of the standard operating procedure relating to the use of restraints which has been communicated to us by US authorities including the immigration and customs enforcement," Misri said.
He said the minister attracted attention to the fact that these have been in practice for a long period of time since 2012.
The foreign secretary said India continued to emphasise to US authorities that there should be no mistreatment of deportees.
"We will continue to take up any instances of mistreatment that come to our attention," he said.
He also stressed on the need to take action against the "real cancer" that is the ecosystem of illegal immigration.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
