Student wins battle to get parent visas

The parents of a St Andrews student who feared missing her graduation due to visa delays have made their flight with hours to spare – after The Courier raised their case with the Home Office.

Dr Shruti Narayanswamy had lost all hope that her Indian parents were going to make it to her special occasion, as their visas still had not been processed after eight weeks.

She spoke to The Courier and local MP Wendy Chamberlain at the end of last week and we contacted the Home Office.

They then vowed to process the visas in time – and Shruti’s mum and dad were able to get hold of the documents in Hyderabad, where they live.

Shruti, 34, who grew up in Mumbai, says her parents received the visas just over five hours before their flight on Tuesday.

They even decided to show a copy of the original article to officials, in an attempt to ensure they did not leave the visa office empty-handed.

She said: “It was so close, the office closes at 4pm and the visas arrived right while my dad was in the queue at around 4pm. My dad basically just waved the print-out of The Courier story and it worked and they told him to wait.

“They realised that people were obviously following the story so they managed to get it – but it was so touch and go.

“Even though they had their visas, I didn’t know if they would have enough time to get on their flight.”

With the visa office being two hours away from Shruti’s parents’ home by bus, the pair were racing against the clock to make their flight on time.

Shruti, whose mum and dad have never left India before, said: “If we had gotten the visa maybe even just an hour later they probably wouldn’t have made the flight.

“It doesn’t even feel real because I was so convinced it was over and I was going to pull out of the graduation ceremony next week because it just didn’t feel right doing it without them. The escalation from The Courier story and the retweets I got from people on Twitter, I think all of those things worked together.

“I’m really excited for the ceremony but also to show them my home in Scotland and discover the country all over again with them.”

Shruti – who also works at St Andrews University – says despite the good news, she is concerned about the level of stress that was put on her parents and others in a similar situation.

She added: “This only happened because of a concerted support from a big university, a supportive MP and a dedicated journalist – hardly anyone has all of these things.

“The escalation from The Courier story and the retweets I got from people , I think all of those things worked together and if they hadn’t there would have been absolutely no way my parents would have made it. I cannot begin to describe how grateful I am.”

MP Wendy Chamberlain said: “While the outcome has been a happy one, this is not at all how the visa system should work.

“It shouldn’t take the involvement of an MP’s office and journalists to get the Home Office to approve a visa on time.”

A spokesperson for St Andrews University said: “We are delighted that common sense prevailed.”

JUST THE TICKET: Dr Shruti Narayanswamy will see her parents at her graduation.