US begins deporting Indian migrants on military flights under Trump’s immigration policies
Washington, D.C.: USA has begun deporting Indian migrants on military flights. A US military aircraft carrying 205 Indian nationals departed from San Antonio, Texas, as part of an ongoing deportation drive under President Donald Trump's strict immigration policies. The C-17 aircraft left at around 3 am IST, with all passengers verified by the Indian government before departure.
This marks the first time a US military plane has been used to deport Indian migrants, making India the farthest destination for such flights. The US Department of Defense has outlined plans to deport over 5,000 undocumented migrants from El Paso, Texas, and San Diego, California. Previous flights transported individuals to Guatemala, Peru, and Honduras.
The military deportation initiative, launched last week as part of Trump’s emergency declaration on immigration, has already seen six flights, four of which landed in Guatemala. However, two flights to Colombia were denied entry, leading to diplomatic tensions before the migrants were eventually transported by Colombian aircraft.
Trump had earlier stated that the US would use military aircraft to repatriate undocumented migrants, emphasising a firm stance on border control. Following discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he expressed confidence that India would cooperate in taking back its nationals. Reports indicate that approximately 18,000 Indian migrants have been identified as undocumented in the US.
The Trump administration has prioritised mass deportations, aligning with his previous campaign promises to remove large numbers of undocumented migrants. Shortly after taking office, he declared a national emergency at the southern border, leading to the approval of a bill mandating detention and deportation for those entering the country illegally and charged with specific crimes.
The use of military resources for deportations has drawn scrutiny, with reports highlighting the high costs involved. A recent flight to Guatemala was estimated to cost over $4,675 per migrant—significantly higher than the cost of deportation through commercial charter flights operated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Beyond immigration policies, Trump has also introduced new tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, with similar measures planned for Europe. Tariff hikes on Canada have been postponed by a month following a $1.3 billion commitment to combat drug trafficking and illegal migration across the northern border. Mexico secured a similar reprieve by deploying 10,000 troops to its border with the US. Meanwhile, additional tariffs of 25% on Mexican and Canadian imports were scheduled to take effect, alongside a 10% increase on Chinese imports.
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Davanagere South bypoll: Cong Muslim leaders allege internal conspiracy to defeat party candidate
Bengaluru (PTI): A rift within the Karnataka Congress surfaced on Friday, a day after the bypolls to two Assembly constituencies in the state, as a group of Muslim leaders alleged a "conspiracy" by some of their own senior party leaders to defeat the official candidate in Davanagere South.
However, they asserted that despite efforts by some within to project that Congress "betrayed" Muslims, the party candidate Samarth Mallikarjun will win in Davanagere South, the constituency where the community has a significant presence.
Chief Whip in the Legislative Council Saleem Ahmed, MLAs Rizwan Arshad, Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan, MLC Bilkis Bano, and other Congress leaders addressed a joint press conference regarding this at the party office here.
"It is a sad thing that some senior leaders of our own party have conspired to defeat the Congress, despite this minorities have voted for the Congress. KPCC President (D K Shivakumar), the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) and the AICC General Secretary (Randeep Singh Surjewala) are aware of this. People have voted for Congress, its ideology and its five guarantee schemes," Ahmed said.
Noting that Samath Mallikarjun was given a ticket after taking all minority leaders of the party into confidence and following their consent, he said, "But after that because of some misconceptions, conspiracies have been hatched. But still, I'm confident that Congress candidate Samarth will win".
According to party sources, these Muslim leaders have also complained to AICC and state party leadership regarding attempts for "internal sabotage" in Davanagere South.
Though the leaders did not indicate who they were accusing. Several party sources said their attack was directed at Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, among a few others.
Khan, who had openly demanded the Davanagere South ticket for a Muslim candidate, had initially stayed away from campaigning in the segment, citing his Kerala poll responsibilities. However, he addressed a press meet along with Samarth's father and Minister SS Mallikarjun at the request of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
MLA Arshad said that there was a massive social media campaign against the Congress party, by the BJP, SDPI and Independents, alleging "betrayal" of the minorities by the Congress. Some within the party, too, tried to project the same.
"We indeed demanded a ticket for the minority, and the party considered it. However, since we, as minority leaders, had to provide a unanimous candidate, we only put forward Abdul Jabbar's name because he is the MLC from the region, and he also pressured us. I think we first failed there, as ground-level party workers did not accept it and some other leaders believed he wasn't that popular," he said.
Arshad noted that the party finally named Samarth Mallikarjun as the candidate "after considering all factors and taking all Muslim leaders into confidence".
"However, some of us Muslim leaders who worked for the party's official candidate were projected as anti-Muslim on social media," he claimed.
Some leaders who accepted the party's decision to nominate Samarth as the party candidate during the meeting called to decide it later showed indirect signs of resistance, he said. "An attempt was made by others, including some within the Congress, to project that the Congress has betrayed the Muslims. This has caused us pain."
Bypolls for Davanagere South were held along with Bagalkot on Thursday. The election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti respectively.
Muslim disgruntlement appears to be a concern for the Congress in Davanagere South. With 14 of the 25 candidates in the fray belonging to the community, there are apprehensions within the party about a split in votes, which could benefit the BJP.
Given its significant presence in the constituency, the Muslim community strongly demanded the Congress ticket for Davanagere South. Some party factions had opposed giving the ticket to the Shamanur family.
Although the Congress was successful in persuading rebel candidate Sadiq Pailwan to withdraw from the contest, he remained in the fray as the move came after the deadline for withdrawal of nominations.
