Insult to India: Shashi Tharoor on US treatment of deported Indians
New Delhi, Feb 6 (PTI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday said the manner in which Indians staying illegally in the US were deported was "an insult to India and the dignity of Indians".
He also asserted that the government needed to issue a message to the US, making it clear that it had no right to do this in such an "insulting manner".
A US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal Indian immigrants landed in Amritsar on Wednesday, the first such batch of Indians deported by the Donald Trump administration as part of a crackdown against illegal immigrants.
The deportees claimed their hands and legs were cuffed throughout the journey and that they were unshackled only after landing in Amritsar.
Asked about the deportation of Indians, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said, "We are protesting the way in which this was done. They have every legal right to deport people who are illegally in their country and we, if they are proven to be Indians, have an obligation to receive them … But to send them like this abruptly in a military aircraft and in handcuffs is an insult to India, it's an insult to the dignity of Indians and we should certainly protest."
The former Union minister of state for external affairs recalled how Colombia had refused to accept suspected immigrants of Colombian origin under similar circumstances and officially protested when people were sent back in handcuffs.
"You send people in a civilian aircraft, you send them normally, we will accept them if they are our citizens but you can't do this," Tharoor told reporters outside Parliament.
"The Modi government needs to issue a message, making it very clear that we accept the right of Americans to send illegal people away but they have no right to do it in such an insulting manner," he said.
"It is a humiliation that we don't have to witness it here in India," he added.
The government should take action so that this is not repeated and demand an explanation for this "atrocious behaviour", Tharoor said.
VIDEO | On deportation of illegal Indian immigrants from the US, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) says, "We are protesting the way in which this was done. They have every legal right to deport people who are illegally in their country and we, if they are proven to be… pic.twitter.com/J1eO79ES4B
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 6, 2025
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Bihar: Over 150 children fall ill after consuming 'mid-day meal' in Saharsa
Saharsa (PTI): More than 150 children were taken ill after allegedly consuming food that was part of the mid-day meal in a school in Bihar’s Saharsa district, a senior official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred at a middle school in Baluaha village of the district.
The official said that 115 children were undergoing treatment at the Sadar Hospital, while around 50 students were admitted to Mahishi Public Health Centre.
“We received information that several children fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal in Baluaha. The children were initially treated at the primary health centre, but later, many were referred to the Sadar Hospital,” Saharsa District Magistrate Deepesh Kumar told reporters.
“According to doctors, the health condition of the children has improved, but they will be kept under observation for some time. There is no need to panic. Some kids are having mild fever. They are being treated accordingly,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, family members of some children claimed that a snake was found in the container in which cooked pulses was stored at the school.
Of the 545 students present in the school, 200 had already eaten their meals by the time the snake was spotted, and later complained of stomach ache and vomiting, they said.
Regarding the claims, the DM said food samples have been collected from the school.
“We will be able to comment on this only after the results of the tested samples arrive,” he said.
