CHANDIGARH: Fifteen Indians, including nine from Punjab, who were deported from Australia, landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi on Thursday. They were handed over to police. A team of Punjab Police officials brought the nine back to the state.
Sources said that according to details available with authorities, these deported Indian nationals are in the 25-45 age group. Of these, nine are from Punjab, belonging to Moga, Khanna, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nawanshahr, Taran Taran, Gurdaspur, Ropar, and Ferozepur districts, and one each from Haryana and Uttarakhand, as well as two from Telangana.
Sources said the deportees have been identified as Satinderjit Singh Shergill (31) from Sansarpur in Jalandhar, Jaswant Singh (34) from Hoshiarpur, Angrej Singh (32) from Chaudhriwala in Taran Taran, Harpreet Singh from Daudhar in Moga, Jaspreet Singh (37) from Dehriwal in Gurdaspur, Jagjit Singh Sidhu (35) from Chachrari in Jagoran, Ranjit Singh (25) from Samrala in Khanna, Harpreet Singh from Balachaur in SBS Nagar, and one woman, Shruti Sharma (45) from Kiratpur Sahib in Ropar. Shruti had gone in 2008 and overstayed.
Rahul (31) is from Haryana, Kanwaljit Singh (27) from Uttarakhand, Samiuddin Khaja (41) and Abdullah Saleh Bhahatab (31) are from Telangana. It is learnt that immigration and other authorities completed documentation at the IGI airport, and they were reportedly questioned by central agencies for five hours before being handed over to the Punjab Police. “Two of them did not come,” said an official.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the government will find out how their documents were prepared and who helped them. If needed, the Ministry of External Affairs will also be contacted, and the matter will be taken to its logical conclusion.
‘Focus on dignified return’
Mann reiterated that the focus now was on ensuring a dignified return and reintegration for those arriving, while also addressing the systemic issues that led to their migration in the first place.