Mumbai (Maharashtra): All 276 passengers, who landed in the charter plane that was grounded in France for four days over suspected human trafficking in the wee hours on Tuesday, left Mumbai airport after interrogations by the immigration officials.
The immigration authorities questioned some of the passengers who arrived but nobody was detained, an official said adding that all 276 passengers were able to leave the airport by 11:30 am. None of the passengers responded to the waiting media persons about their journey or what unfolded during the last four days. Also, questions regarding the passengers who were interrogated by immigration officials went unanswered.
The aircraft, an Airbus A340, landed in Mumbai shortly after 4 am, the official said. It had taken off from Vatry airport near Paris around 2.30 pm local time. There were 15 crew members on board when the plan landed in Mumbai.
According to French authorities, the plane had 276 passengers on board when it took off for Mumbai, as 25 persons, including two minors, had expressed the wish to apply for asylum and were still on French soil. Two of the passengers who were earlier accused of orchestrating the suspected case of human trafficking were produced before a judge. They were released and placed on assisted witness status, a French news channel said.
When the flight landed in Vatry airport, there were 11 unaccompanied minors among the 303 Indian passengers on board, a local official had said. Makeshift beds were arranged for the stranded passengers, who were given access to toilets and showers and provided meals and hot drinks in the hall of Vatry airport, the official had said.
The flight, which was operated by Romanian charter company Legend Airlines and bound for Nicaragua, had landed at Vatry on Thursday for a technical stopover en route from Dubai when French police intervened. French authorities launched a judicial investigation into the conditions and purpose of the trip, with a unit specialising in organised crime investigating suspected human trafficking.
Nicaragua has become a popular destination for those seeking asylum in the US. As many as 96,917 Indians attempted to enter the US illegally in the financial year 2023, signaling a 51.61 percent jump from the previous year, according to data made available by the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).
At least 41,770 of those Indians attempted to enter the US via the Mexican land border, CBP data shows. Flights to Nicaragua or third countries where obtaining travel documents is easy have come to be known as 'dunki' flights. Sources said that most of the passengers are from the state of Gujarat. The plane, owned by Romanian charter company Legend Airlines, was en route to Nicaragua from the United Arab Emirates with 303 passengers on board.
However, the aircraft stopped at Vatry airport in France for fuel and was grounded there. The police got information about human trafficking through this airport through an anonymous phone call.
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