MEA spokesman says India will bring citizens back overstaying in US or elsewhere

 Anjali Sharma

WASHINGTON DC – India Ministry of External Affairs Rabdhir Jaiswal on Friday said India will bring back its nationals overstaying in the United States or elsewhere.

Jaiswal in a weekly press conference said, “For Indian nationals, whether in the United States or elsewhere, if they are overstaying or residing in a country without proper documentation, we will bring them back, provided the necessary documents to verify their nationality are shared with us.”

US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigrants in the US prompted remarks by the MEA.

American government has detained hundreds of illegal immigrants and started deporting them to their respective countries.

According to media reports, 18,000 Indians are likely to face deportation.

Jaiswal was asked about the number of Indian nationals being taken back from the US, he said “any discussion on numbers will be premature”.

He stated that New Delhi is against illegal migration, linking it to organized crime.

“Illegal migration and trade are two separate issues. Our approach, policy, and stance on illegal migration are very clear. We are against illegal migration and the reason for this is that it is linked to organized crime,” said Jaiswal.

On Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s visit to China, the MEA spokesman said that all issues of bilateral interest will be discussed.

“Regarding the upcoming visit of the Foreign Secretary which is going to happen on 26,27 January, the Foreign Secretary will be meeting his counterpart, the Vice Minister in China, where all issues of bilateral interest will be discussed. This meeting flows from the understanding that the leaders reached in Kazan, and subsequent to that, we’ve had meetings at the special representatives’ level, and we’ve had foreign minister-level meetings as well.”