Lok Sabha proceedings have been adjourned till 2 pm on Thursday following uproar over the issue of deportation of illegal Indian immigrants from the United States.
Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the day on Thursday following uproar over the issue of deportation of illegal Indian immigrants from the United States. As soon as the House assembled, the opposition members, mostly Congress MPs were on their feet trying to raise the issue.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar addressed the Rajya Sabha about the matter where he noted that "people to people exchanges is the bedrock of India's deepening ties with the US."
Earlier, both the Houses of the Parliament were adjourned till noon after Opposition leaders including Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, Manickam Tagore, KC Venugopal and Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh moved adjournment motion in their respective Houses.
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.
Of them, 33 each are from Haryana and Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, three each from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and two from Chandigarh.
Also Read | Indian Deportees Handcuffed, Chained On Their Way Back From US; Congress Asks For MEA Statement
The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day amid strong protests by opposition members on the deportation of Indians illegally living in the US.
The Lower House was earlier adjourned till 3:30 pm, its third adjournment for the day, amid vociferous protests by the opposition members on the issue.
When the Lok Sabha reconvened and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made a statement on the deportation issue, Speaker Om Birla adjourned the proceedings as the opposition members continued their protest.
Even when Jaishankar was making his statement, the opposition members were on their feet, raising slogans on the matter.
Amid the sloganeering, the external affairs minister said, "We are, of course, engaging with the US government to ensure that the returning deportees are not mistreated in any manner during the flight."
"At the same time, the House will appreciate that our focus should be on strong crackdown on the illegal migration industry while taking steps to ease visas for legitimate travellers," he said.
Jaishankar said the process of deportation was not new and it had happened in the past as well.
Earlier in the day, he had made a statement in the Rajya Sabha on the issue.
After the Lower House reconvened at 2 pm following its second adjournment, the opposition members kept insisting that the government answer their questions on the deportation issue and the alleged mistreatment of the deportees.
Amid the sloganeering, Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal informed the Lower House that Jaishankar would make a statement on the deportations at 3:30 pm.
BJP member Dilip Saikia, who was in the chair, then adjourned the proceedings till 3:30 pm.
The Lok Sabha was in turmoil when it convened for the day. Speaker Birla tried to pacify the agitating members, saying that the government had taken serious note of their concerns.
"The issue is serious. It is a matter of foreign policy. The government has taken it seriously. The foreign country also has its own rules and regulations. You can raise your issues at 12 noon and allow the Question Hour to run smoothly," he said.
The Question Hour is important, he said.
"People have chosen you to raise their issues in the House but you are resorting to protests. This method is not good," he said.
With the first question of the day marked for TMC MP Kirti Azad, the speaker said, "You are not allowing the member of your associate party to raise his issues. You are systematically disrupting the House. This is not good."
The protesting members ignored the speaker's pleas, following which Birla adjourned the proceedings till 12 noon.
Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned in the pre-noon session without transacting any business on Thursday as opposition MPs tried to raise the issue of deportation of Indian immigrants from the US.
MPs from the Congress, CPI, TMC, AAP and CPM gave notices under Rule 267, that seeks to set aside listed business of the day to take up discussion on the issue being raised through them, but the chair rejected all of them.
MPs then stood in their places and raised the issue. The MPs said the US had deported the Indian immigrants in a military plane in the most inhuman manner and they are not being allowed to raise the issue in the House.
Deputy Chairman Harivansh, who was in the chair, first ordered that the utterances of the opposition MPs will not go on record and then adjourned the proceedings till 12 noon when they persisted with their demand.
Those who gave notices under Rule 267 included CPI's Santosh Kumar P, TMC's Sanket Gokhale, CPM's V Sivadasan and Congress leaders Anil Kumar Yadav, Shaktisingh Gohil, Pramod Tiwari, Renuka Chaudhary, and Ashok Singh.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar addressing the matter in Rajya Sabha on Thursday said that the process of deportation is not new and been ongoing for several years and added that the government is engaging with the US to ensure that deported Indians are not mistreated.
He stressed that the focus should be on the strong crackdown on the illegal migration industry while taking steps to ease visas for legitimate travellers.
According to the minister, it is the obligation of all countries to take back their nationals if they are found to be living illegally abroad. This is naturally subject to an unambiguous verification of their nationality, he said.
"This is not a policy applicable to any specific country nor indeed one only practiced by India," he said in the Upper House. Jaishankar said the standard operating procedure for deportation by aircraft provides for the use of restraints as per the US’ policy since 2012. However, the SOPs do not include restraining women and children, he said.
"Further need of deportees during transit related to food and other necessities, including possible medical emergencies, are attended to. During toilet breaks deportees are temporarily unrestrained if needed. This is applicable to chartered civilian aircraft as well as military aircraft," he said.