CHANDIGARH: Both the BJP and the Congress have made scathing remarks in response to Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann's accusation that the Centre chose Amritsar airport for landing the second US plane carrying 119 Indian deportees to defame Punjab.
Top leaders from both parties have accused the AAP-led Punjab government of not controlling illegal migration to the US and ignoring the families of the deportees.
Senior BJP leader R P Singh wrote on X that Amritsar was chosen since it is the closest international airport for flights entering India from the USA.
"Stop politicizing the issue and promoting conspiracy theories due to your lack of knowledge," he wrote.
BJP MLA Manjinder Singh Sirsa slammed the state government and police for enabling travel agents who have tricked Punjab youth and prompted them to sell their property to go to the USA.
"How could such travel agents flourish? They made thousands of people jobless. AAP should think about how they destroyed Punjab. They said that people would leave everything (in the US) and return to Punjab, but they are selling their lands to leave Punjab and AAP is still creating a drama," Sirsa added.
BJP state vice president Fatehjung Singh Bajwa said that by politicising the issue, CM Mann is disrespecting families already under pressure.
"These agents are taking huge sums of money and sending the children to other countries. Immigration is the biggest industry in Punjab. What action has been taken against illegal immigration centres? This issue should not be politicised. The families of Punjab are already under pressure. Nothing was done when they were leaving and now the CM is making it political," he said.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Punjab Assembly and senior Congress leader, Partap Singh Bajwa alleged that the AAP-led government has failed to curb human trafficking in the state.
Bajwa said that the Punjab Prevention of Human Smuggling Act, 2012, had been put in place to curb fraudulent practices of travel agents indulged in organised human smuggling in Punjab.
He then questioned whether CM Mann, who also holds the Home Portfolio, let the Punjabis know how many travel agents have been booked under the same law in the last three years.
"Mann said that illegal immigration is not only a problem in Punjab but a national problem. True, but, is his government not responsible for acting if any illegality happens in the state? He seems to have been running away from his responsibilities. However, it was AAP's one of the main election planks to stop the brain drain by motivating youngsters to explore careers in the home state," Bajwa added.
He said that it had been ten days since the first flight carrying 104 deportees including 30 Punjabis arrived in Amritsar, and the Mann government failed miserably to provide a helping hand and announce any rehabilitation programme for them.
The AAP government has not assured them that the government would help them get their money refunded by the illegal travel agents, he added.
"Mann says he is going the receive the 119 deportees arriving today in Amritsar. In the absence of a rehabilitation programme and compensation, this act of Mann is nothing more than a publicity stunt. He always remains lusty for publicity," Bajwa stated.
Hitting at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bajwa said that inhuman treatment was meted out to Indian deportees in the previous flight.
The deportees were handcuffed and shackled in the plane; they were not even allowed to use the washroom. However, during his recent US visit, PM Modi had not taken up the issue with US President Donald Trump.
Bajwa asked, "Is this how PM Modi would maintain the dignity of the sons and daughters of India?"
These statements came after Mann accused the Centre of attempting to defame Punjab as part of a conspiracy.
The on board the flight set to land late Saturday are 67 from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Rajasthan and Maharashtra, and one each from Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
Meanwhile, 31 out of 157 deportees returning to India on Sunday are from Punjab; 30 out of 104 deportees who landed on February 5 were also from Punjab. A total of 128 deportees are from Punjab.
Mann had said on Friday, "The BJP-led Centre always discriminates against Punjab. It does not let go of any chance of defaming the state. As part of a conspiracy, they are trying to defame Punjab and Punjabis."
Mann also questioned the Centre about the criteria for choosing Amritsar airport to land the second aircraft.
"What is the criterion for choosing Amritsar? The Centre and the Ministry of External Affairs should tell me. Why did you choose Amritsar and not the national capital? You did this to defame Punjab and Punjabis," he said.
