The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday told the Lok Sabha that 1,703 Indians have been deported from the United States between January 20 and July 22.

The highest number of deportees were from Punjab with 620 persons, followed by 604 from Haryana and 245 from Gujarat, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh told Parliament.

Singh was replying to a question by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi about the deportation of Indian citizens from the United States.

Of the total, 767 individuals returned on commercial flights, while 333 were deported on US military flights. Another 231 persons came back to India on charter flights operated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Singh said.

Among the deportees, 1,562 were men and 141 were women.

Singh added that the foreign ministry remains engaged with the US authorities to “ensure the humane treatment of deportees during these deportation operations”.

The minister highlighted that concerns had been “strongly registered” with the US about the treatment of deportees, “particularly with respect to use of shackles, especially on women and children”.

“Concerns with regards to religious / cultural sensitivities including the use of turbans and dietary preferences have also been formally taken up,” the reply added.

Singh also flagged that the ministry had not received any complaints about the alleged...

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