NEW DELHI: Several opposition MPs on Thursday slammed the government for the way Indians staying illegally in the United States were deported, questioning the treatment meted out to them.
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 government as part of a crackdown against illegal immigrants.
The deportees claimed their hands and legs were cuffed throughout the journey and they were unshackled only after landing at the Amritsar airport.
Opposition parliamentarians, including Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, protested the treatment meted out to the Indians by US authorities by staging a demonstration in Parliament complex.
Some of the opposition leaders protested while wearing handcuffs.
Amid attacks by the opposition, Union minister Chirag Paswan said the government will put forth its views at an appropriate time.
"It is a policy decision and it should not be politicised by the opposition," he said.
Hitting out at the government, Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi said the way Indians were brought back shows the "weakness" of the government.
"The way women were treated and brought back hand cuffed like criminals. We will not tolerate the insult to the country," he told reporters in Parliament complex.
He alleged that for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his personal image is more important than the standing of the country.
"It is a black day .The prime minister is silent," he said.
Another Congress leader K C Venugopal wondered why diplomatic relations between India and the US were not coming handy to avert such situations.
"We have moved a notice for an adjournment on this issue in Parliament," the Lok Sabha member said.
Former Union minister and Congresss leader Shashi Tharoor said the US has a legal right to deport people living there illegally. But we are protesting the way they were sent back.
He suggested a civilian aircraft could have been used for the purpose.
TMC's Kirti Azad also questioned the way Indians were sent back, describing the incident as "painful".