British MP denied entry into India
Debbie Abrahams chairs UK’s All Party Parliamentary Group for Kashmir
ABritish MP, critical of India’s move to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, yesterday said she was denied entry despite a valid visa after she landed at Delhi airport and deported to Dubai from where she had flown into the Indian capital.
Labour Party MP Debbie Abrahams’ charge of a valid visa was rebutted by India’s home ministry which said she was informed about her e-visa being cancelled.
No explanation
Abrahams, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for Kashmir, said she was travelling on a valid evisa to India to visit family and friends but her visa was revoked without explanation.
A Home Ministry spokesperson in New Delhi said the British parliamentarian had been duly informed that her visa was cancelled and she arrived Delhi despite knowing this.
When contacted, Abrahams said she “had not received any emails before February 13”. After that, she had been travelling and was away from office.
Her office in the UK confirmed she was put on a plane to Dubai, which is where she flew into Delhi from earlier on Monday.
Her e-visa was reportedly issued last October, and was valid until October 2020.
Recounting her experience at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, she said in a statement on Twitter that she arrived in India yesterday morning and was informed that her e-visa been cancelled.