NEW DELHI: Amid concerns raised by the US over irregular migration, India reiterated Friday that it would, as in the past, accept illegal migrants sent back from the US only after verifying their Indian origin and that any talk about the number of such undocumented people it was willing to take back was “premature”.
The remarks by the ministry of external affairs came shortly after reports from the US said “hundreds” of illegal immigrants were deported in a military aircraft just days into Donald Trump’s presidency. More than 500 migrants were also reported to have been arrested. The first military flights took migrants to Guatemala and El Salvador. Indian officials said they had no information about this “largest massive deportation operation”.
“The Trump administration arrested 538 illegal immigrant criminals… also deported hundreds of illegal immigrant criminals via military aircraft. The largest massive deportation operation in history is well underway. Promises made. Promises kept,” Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X. Trump has maintained all along that illegal immigration puts an enormous burden on the US and pledged all lawful action at his disposal to address the “crisis”.
Illegal migration & trade are separate issues, says MEA
While US authorities were reported last year to have served final order of removal to close to 18,000 people for deportation to India, Indian govt has not backed that number, maintaining it is yet to be verified by Indian authorities. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) called India “uncooperative” because of delay in verifying their citizenship.
After his meeting with counterpart Marco Rubio, external affairs minister S Jaishankar had said that India follows the same policy-facilitating legitimate return of illegal migrants if their Indian origin is validated-with all countries and the US was no exception. “We are against illegal immigration, especially because it is linked to several forms of organised crime. For Indians not just in the US, but anywhere in the world, if they are Indian nationals and they are overstaying, or they are in a particular country without proper documentation, we will take them back provided documents are shared with us so that we can verify their nationality,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
“If that happens to be the case, we will take things forward and facilitate their return to India. Any discussion about the number of people who would be taken back is premature,” he added.
Speaking after his meeting with Rubio, Jaishankar had said while India was aware of the ongoing debate on the issue and the sensitivities involved, India’s position on illegal migration has always been consistent and principled. Responding to a query at a media briefing, Jaiswal also said India looked at illegal migration and trade-another likely contentious matter given Trump’s tariff threats- as separate issues and its approach has always been constructive.