India has always been open to legitimate return of undocumented Indians to their country, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday, noting that New Delhi is still in the process of verifying those from the United States who can be deported to India and the number of such individuals cannot be determined yet.
"As a government, we are obviously very much supportive of legal mobility because we do believe in a global workplace. We want Indian talent and Indian skills to have the maximum opportunity at the global level. At the same time, we are also very firmly opposed to illegal mobility and illegal migration," Jaishankar told a group of Indian reporters in Washington, DC.
"Because you also know that when something illegal happens, many other illegal activities get joined onto it, which is not desirable. It is certainly not good reputationally. So, with every country, and the US is no exception, we have always maintained that if any of our citizens are there illegally, and if we are sure that they are our citizens, we have always been open to their legitimate return to India," Jaishankar said.
The minister was responding to a query on news reports that India is working with the Trump administration for the deportation of some 1,80,000 Indians in the US who are either undocumented, or have overstayed their visas.
"This position is not unique to the United States. I do understand that right now there is a certain debate going on, and a resulting sensitivity which is there, but we have been consistent, we have been very principled about it and that remains our position. I conveyed that clearly to Secretary (of State, Marco) Rubio," he said.
"At the same time, I also told him that, while we understand all of this, and I also accept that these are autonomous processes, it is in our mutual interest to facilitate legal and mutually beneficial mobility.
"If it takes 400-odd days of waiting period to get a visa, I don't think the relationship is well served by this. He (Rubio) also noted that point," he said.
"But while I've seen some numbers... I caution you about them because for us, a number is operative when we can actually validate the fact that the individual concerned is of Indian origin," Jaishankar added.
'Confident and upbeat administration'
Jaishankar, who spent four days in the US capital as Trump 2.0 took over the reigns of power, left for New Delhi on Wednesday after witnessing what he termed a 'very confident, and upbeat administration'.
"What I saw was really a very confident and upbeat incoming administration. I mean that feeling that 'look, we need to get things done'," he said.
Jaishankar, 70, was seated in the front row during the presidential inauguration at Capitol Rotunda, attended the inaugural ball, held bilateral meetings with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, attended a multilateral Quad meeting, besides interacting with top officials of the new Trump administration.
"You are a partner with whom we can get things done because there is already a strong chemistry between the (US) president and the (Indian) prime minister. There is a history of working together," Jaishankar said in response to a query.
"Given the buoyancy and confidence I saw in the last 48 hours, I feel it's an extraordinarily active administration. And not just the last 48 hours, they were actually very active even before assuming office. Going by the energy I could experience, I can tell you in many ways that it is fully reflected on the Indian side, and we would certainly like to use it to take our relationship to a higher level," he added.
Stating that he attended a presidential inauguration for the first time, Jaishankar said, "I was there at the Rotunda observing the swearing-in. It was obviously very impressive."
'Had brief discussion with Rubio, Waltz on situation in Bangladesh'
Jaishankar on Wednesday said he had brief discussion on the current situation in Bangladesh with Secretary of State Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.
"Yes, we had a brief discussion on Bangladesh. I don't think it's appropriate that I get into more details," Jaishankar said.
However, there was no discussion on the attacks on Indian consulates in the US or the threat to Indian diplomats here, Jaishankar said.
"I didn't raise those issues on this occasion," he said.
"But I do want to say that the attack on our consulate in San Francisco is a very, very serious matter. It is something for which we expect accountability, and we would like to see that people who did it are held responsible," Jaishankar said.
Asked about two cases -- one against a former Indian official and another against an Indian business tycoon -- which have come up in US courts in the last two years, Jaishankar said, "No, the subject didn't come up (during the meetings)."
-- By Lalit K Jha in Washington, DC
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