"No IAF or chartered aircraft used for Indian immigrants' repatriation since 2020": Centre tells Parliament

Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita informed this in a written reply to a query by Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale.

Gokhale asked the MEA, the details of all instances when the Ministry has used Indian Air Force or chartered/commercial civilian aircraft for repatriation of Indian immigrants being deported from other countries between 2020 till date.

"The Ministry of External Affairs has not hired any Indian Air Force or Chartered/Commercial Civilian aircraft for the purposes of repatriation of Indian immigrants being deported from any country since 2020. However, in a few exceptional cases, Indian immigrants facing deportation were assisted in returning home on a means-tested basis through the purchase of tickets on commercial flights," Margherita said.

Saket Gokhale also asked for details of countries that have used military aircraft for deporting Indian immigrants between the period of 2020 till date.

Replying to this, the Minister of State for External Affairs said, "The United States has used military aircraft for the deportation of Indian immigrants illegally residing in the US in 2025. Since 2009, the US Government used Chartered/Commercial aircraft for the deportation of 15,564 such Indian nationals."

Earlier this month, the third batch of 112 illegal deportees landed at Amritsar Airport after US President Donald Trump's inauguration.

On February 5, a US Air Force plane carrying the first batch of Indian citizens who had allegedly migrated to the US illegally arrived in Amritsar, Punjab.

Opposition parties slammed the government both inside and outside Parliament, alleging that the deported Indians were brought in an "inhuman manner" on a US military plane and claiming that they were "ill-treated and handcuffed." (ANI)