Mann, BJP spar over Amritsar landing
Hours before the second flight landed in Amritsar, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann stepped up his attack on the Centre for selecting the airport for deportation flights even as the BJP cited city’s proximity to the US to justify the move.
Mann, who held a press conference at the airport where he had come to receive the deportees, claimed that the BJP-ruled Centre had deliberately routed the deportation flights to Amritsar, instead of Delhi or Ahmedabad. “The holy city should not be turned into a deportation centre,” he said, questioning whether such flights would be allowed to land in Vatican City. “If the Centre respects its citizens, it should arrange a dignified return for them,” the CM said.
Why not Delhi, Hindon
Do not make our holy city (Amritsar) a deportation centre. There are many airbases... they can land the plane at Hindon or Delhi airport. Bhagwant Mann, CM
Politicising issue
Amritsar is the closest international airport for flights entering India from the US. That’s why it is landing there. Stop politicising the issue. RP Singh, BJP Spokesperson
He further expressed security concerns over the landing of a US military aircraft in a border district, calling it a potential “threat to the national security”. Mann’s assertions came a day after he accused the Centre of trying to “defame Punjab and Punjabis” as part of a conspiracy.
BJP leaders, including RP Singh, Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Jaiveer Shergill, sought to counter the charge by citing city’s proximity to the US.
In a post, BJP’s RP Singh reasoned that Amritsar was chosen as it was the “closest” international airport for flights entering the country from the US. Party national secretary Manjinder Singh Sirsa targeted the Punjab Government and its police for allegedly allowing travel agents to mislead state youth into selling their property to migrate to the US.
Mann hit back, saying: “This plane could have landed at Delhi, which comes first for flights from US, or any other airbase in the country. But choosing Amritsar, a border district, is nothing short of a conspiracy.”
The CM vowed to investigate the role of travel agents. “We will recover this money and help these individuals rebuild their lives in Punjab.”
Partap Bajwa, Leader of Opposition in Punjab, said: “Before receiving the deportees, Mann should tell how many illegal travel agents have been booked for human smuggling in the past three years.”
