Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has criticised the United States' recent deportation of Indian citizens who had allegedly migrated to the U.S. illegally. Tharoor acknowledged the U.S.'s right to deport individuals residing in the country unlawfully, but he expressed strong disapproval of the manner in which the deportations were carried out.

Tharoor, speaking to ANI, stated that the U.S. should have used commercial or civilian aircraft for the deportations instead of a military plane. He stressed that the deportees were not criminals and did not deserve to be treated as such.

He deemed the use of handcuffs and a military aircraft as "unnecessary" and not advisable. According to Tharoor, the deportees were primarily seeking better lives and had no malicious intentions.

Tharoor also noted that this was not the first time the U.S. had deported Indian citizens, with over 1,100 Indians being deported under the Biden administration in 2024. He suggested that the media attention on the issue was due to the Trump administration's quicker pace of deportations.

Tharoor said that India has an obligation to accept the deportees if their identities are confirmed as Indian. He characterized the way the U.S. conducted the deportations as an "insult to India" and a violation of the dignity of Indians. He recalled that Colombia had protested similar treatment of its citizens by the U.S.

ANI