AAP's Sandeep Pathak gives zero-hour notice in Rajya Sabha to discuss hostile drone activities on Punjab border

New Delhi [India], February 10 (ANI): Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak on Monday gave a Zero Hour notice in Rajya Sabha on the issue of hostile drone activities and the smuggling of drugs and arms along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab.
In a letter to the Secretary General of Rajya Sabha, Pathak stated that Pakistan has been continuously using drones to smuggle drugs and weapons into Indian territory along the Punjab border.
"Over the past few years, there has been an unprecedented rise in such incidents. In 2023, security forces seized 107 drones along the Punjab border, whereas by November 2024, nearly 200 drones had been seized. These confiscated drones were found carrying weapons and drugs," he said.
Calling the large-scale use of drones by Pakistan to spread narcotics and violence in Punjab alarming, he stated, "Several drones have even been intercepted in agricultural fields. The fact that so many drones are breaching India's borders is a major security threat."
"The central government needs to take strict action against this menace," he added.
He further highlighted the need to expose Pakistan's conspiracy to push Indian youth into drug addiction at the international level.
"Moreover, Pakistan's conspiracy to push Indian youth, especially in Punjab, into drug addiction must be exposed at the international level. At the same time, the world's most advanced drone interception systems should be deployed along the border to ensure that no drone from Pakistan is able to enter Indian territory," he said.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Manish Tewari on Monday submitted an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha to discuss the treatment of Indian citizens deported from the United States and the Government of India's response on the matter.
In his motion to the Lok Sabha Secretary-General, Tewari urged that the House suspend Zero Hour and the relevant rules pertaining to Question Hour and other scheduled business to deliberate on the deportation process and the conditions faced by Indian nationals.
The Congress MP claimed that, according to US estimates, approximately 7.25 lakh undocumented Indians reside in the United States, with 24,000 currently held in detention facilities. (ANI)