Repatriate 20,000 Punjabis stranded in Dubai: Sukhbir to Centre

The SAD chief said they had been ousted from various jobs by private companies in Dubai and wanted to return back to India, but could not do so because their passports had been impounded by their employers

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday urged Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar to direct the Indian consulate in Dubai to extend help to around 20,000 Punjabi workers who were stranded without passports in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), besides making arrangements to repatriate them back to India.

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In a statement, the SAD chief said they had been ousted from various jobs by private companies in Dubai and wanted to return back to India, but could not do so because their passports had been impounded by their employers. Sukhbir said he had received messages from many youth that they were ready to pay for their air tickets, but there were thousands of workers who had spent their savings and were not in a position to afford return tickets. “Such persons should be rescued and naval ships can be dispatched to bring them back home,” he said.