The Federation of Indian Associations of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut and its affiliates around the country are protesting the new Indian rules regarding visas and passports, saying they would bring "untold hardship and agony" to tens of thousands of expatriates and calling on New Delhi to withdraw the new guidelines.
FIA President Nirav Mehta has written to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, saying the rules making it mandatory to renounce Indian citizenship with retrospective effect were "mindless and archaic," according to a May 25 press release from the group.
Calling the new regulations totally unjustified and utterly bureaucratic," Mehta indicated they would mean that Indian Americans, their spouses and children holding U.S. passports would no longer be eligible for a 10-year tourist visa but only a five-year entry visa with one-and-a-half times the normal fees, whereas other nationals would continue to get 10-year multiple entry tourist visas.
The new rules, which include significant penalties for cancellation of an old passport, have imposed a "heavy burden and unnecessary strain" on the Indian-American community. "Is it not a shame to treat patriotic Indians with utter disdain?" Mehta asks in his letter."
Indian Americans are among the largest segment whose remittances and foreign direct investments have helped build modern India in many fronts. Calling the announcement of the new rules "a bombshell tearing the community apart," Mehta contended that consulate staff was also grappling with the new rules and it was too much to expect people to comply overnight.
Mehta said payment of $175 for a surrender certificate along with penalties ranging from $250 to $1,500 make the Overseas Citizen of India or Person of Indian Origin cards a very expensive proposition.
Nimesh Dave, vice president of the FIA, said all the promises made by the political leadership at the annual Pravasi Bharatiya Divas conclaves in India, such as voting rights for Non-resident Indians (NRIs) and dual citizenship, were still a distant dream. "Instead of supporting the right cause of NRIs and PIOs (Persons of Indian Origin), the government has introduced draconian laws to stifle the patriotic Indians abroad," he was quoted as saying in the press release.
The FIA is planning to hold rallies outside the Indian Consulate in New York as well as the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C. The organization is also scheduling press conferences to generate public debate on the issue and collecting petitions to submit to Indian authorities.
