An Emmy-nominated journalist of Indian origin working with America’s VICE News was denied entry into India on Wednesday and was deported to New York, his mother has alleged. She said her son paid the price for speaking the truth and was deported because of his work as a journalist.
Angad Singh, who is an American citizen, also has an Overseas of Citizen of India card (OCI.)
When asked, the U.S. Embassy spokesperson said he was unable to comment “due to privacy concerns” regarding U.S. citizens.
Mr. Singh’s mother Gurmeet Kaur posted on Facebook that though the authorities did not give a reason, “but we know it is his award-winning journalism that scares them.”
She said, “It is the stories he did and the stories he is capable of. It is the love for his Motherland that they can’t stand. It is the cutting-edge reporting of #ViceNews that gets to them.”
Mr. Singh had arrived in Delhi at 8.30 pm on Wednesday and was deported few hours later. He was here for a family reunion.
Mr. Singh has made documentaries on the Shaheen Bagh protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in 2020. Mr. Singh, who produces documentaries, had published a video on the delta wave last year winning him an Emmy nomination recently.
“Emmy nominated for our coverage on India’s deadly delta wave. What a recognition to more than a dozen brave, and talented reporters, producers, camera ops, editors and assistants that made our reporting possible,” he wrote on Twitter on July 28. He also produced a video on farm distress in India earlier his year.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) did not comment on Mr. Singh’s deportation.
