A disturbing video showing an Indian student handcuffed and restrained on the ground at Newark Airport prior to deportation from the United States has caused widespread anger. The clip was shared by Indian-American entrepreneur Kunal Jain, a social entrepreneur who writes books in Hindi, and recently relocated to India.
The footage has raised serious concerns about the treatment of Indian students overseas and has led to demands for intervention by the Indian government. Jain called on the Indian Embassy in the United States to look into the incident and help the student. He tagged the Indian Embassy, as well as the External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, seeking help for the boy.
I felt helpless and heartbroken
"I witnessed a young Indian student being deported from Newark Airport last night— handcuffed, crying, treated like a criminal. He came chasing dreams, not causing harm. As an NRI, I felt helpless and heartbroken. This is a human tragedy," he posted on his social media handle.
"This poor kid's parent won’t know what’s happening to him. @IndianEmbassyUS @DrSJaishankar he was to be boarded last night in the same flight with me but he never got boarded. Someone needs to find out what’s going on with him at the New Jersey authorities. I found him disoriented," Jain said.
'I'm not crazy...'
Further, Jain believes from the student's accent that the latter is from Haryana in India. The boy, he noted, was shouting, "I am not crazy...they are hell bent to prove that I am crazy."
"These children get their visas and get on a flight in the morning. For some reason, they are unable to explain the reason for their visit to the immigration authorities and are sent back on the evening flight tied up like criminals. Every day 3-4 such cases are happening. There have been more such cases in the last few days," he added.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, since taking office in January, the administration of US President Donald Trump has deported a total of 1,080 Indian nationals from the United States.
Viral video sparks outrage
The incident sparked a wave of reactions on social media, with opinions divided between worry and doubt. A user questioned, "What do u mean by; he's not been able to explain to the US authorities. If he can't speak English, how did he clear his exams, what kind of courses was he going to take?"
"Know at least 8-10 Indians who’ve been deported back to India on direct flights WITHOUT handcuffs! The fact that there were so many Airport Authorities & Police clearly goes to show that this wasn’t just a matter of a student being deported. I bet there’s more to it!" said another user.
"You are not alone, most of the NRIs are not helpless, right word is useless when it comes to stand together. We are so selfish, in next coming years we will feel the heat cos of our attitude!!"
"The buggers who go there to do activism deserve to be kicked out... though am not sure what happened to this guy particularly. But many students get carried away into woke issues and forget they came there to study."
"Handcuffed? May be wrong but did he come the right way? If not, then what is wrong if he is being deported?" asked a third, adding, "If he has come the right way then there is something wrong for sure with the legalities for him to be treated that way."
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