Was missing for 5 months: Shahkot deportee's father

'Sade naal naraz hoke gaya hai, chori nikal gaya sade kolon, sannu pata nahi lagga” (he was angry with us when he went, he didn’t tell us, nor did we come to know), says Dalip Singh, the father of deportee Buta Singh (37).

Hailing from Pipli village, Shahkot, in Jalandhar, Dalip wasn’t even aware Buta's plans to go to the US, until he came to know he had reached the wall bordering the US, 15 days ago.

Interacting with mediapersons at the Amritsar airport in the wee hours of Monday, Dalip said, “It’s been five months since my son left, and we had no idea where he was. When he was about to cross the border to enter the US, he called us. He stayed at the camp for 12-14 days, then returned. It’s been 15 days since we talked.”

Dalip added, “My son had studied till 7th standard. He was a farmer here. We didn’t want him to go, but he planned this with his wife. He pledged some of his land. He had also tried to go around three years ago. Then also, I had tried to stop him."

Dalip added, “We feel bad about whatever is happening, if people have to be sent back, they must be sent safely (without shackles).”

Meanwhile, deportee Lakhwinder Singh, a resident of Raipur Peer Bakhshwala village in Bholath, Kapurthala, said, “I had left for the US on January 8 in hopes of a better future. After I crossed the Mexico border, I was handcuffed and taken to a camp, where, after being kept in custody for some days, I was deported. We were handcuffed before boarding the flight to India and one hour before the flight landed at Amristar, our handcuffs were removed.”

Wary families avoid media glare

With the steady stream of deportees returning to the country, the returnees and their families increasingly refuse to entertain the queries of the media. Baldev Singh, the grandfather of deportee Taranjit Singh (19) from Pojewal village (in Nawanshahr) refused to speak, only stating “I am thankful to God, our son has returned safe and sound. I don’t want to speak any further.”

Taranjit was in England from where he planned to go to the US, he reached the US on January 25, the family shared. Families at Sultanpur Lodhi, Mukerian and other places also refused to speak to media.