The deportation of Debbie Abrahams by India was indeed necessary, as she is not just an MP, but a Pak proxy known f… https://t.co/uhrweE08Bj — Abhishek Singhvi (@DrAMSinghvi) 1581994108000

LONDON: A British Labour MP, who has been highly critical of India’s decision to scrap Jammu & Kashmir’s special status and who runs a British cross-party parliamentary group on Kashmir, was refused entry into India on Monday.Debbie Abrahams, senior vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kashmir (APPGK), landed in New Delhi at 8.50am with her PIO parliamentary aide Harpreet Uppal, to be told her visa was not in order.As she reached the immigration counter, handed her passport and had her photo taken, the official shook his head and said her visa was rejected. She claimed she was then taken to an area marked “deportee” cell and “physically marched” to a plane and deported to Dubai.A home ministry spokesperson said the British parliamentarian travelled to Delhi despite having been informed in advance.The APPGK spells out its objectives plainly enough. With Labour and Conservative MPs of Indian and Pakistani heritage on board, it seeks “to support the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people through dialogue, to seek support from British parliamentarians, to highlight the abuses of human rights in Kashmir, and to seek justice for the people there”.After the annulling of Article 370, Abrahams had written to India’s high commissioner to UK Ruchi Ghanashyam saying, “We would like to express our grave concern at the announcement by Indian home minister Amit Shah that Article 370 has been removed by presidential order.” She had referred to reports on use of cluster munitions on “unarmed civilians”, an unsubstantiated allegation.She urged the UK government to consider calling for a moratorium on India’s action for a democratic process to enable the citizens who will affected by this unilateral action to have their say.“Why didn’t they let me get a ‘visa on arrival’? Is it because I have been critical of the Indian government on Kashmir human rights issues?” Abrahams tweeted after landing in Dubai.Immigration sources, however, said the MP’s visa was not in order and wondered how the airline that flew her allowed her to board without a valid document.The MP’s return to Dubai soon went viral with right-wing handles accusing her of leading a parliamentary group that was partisan and pro-Pakistan, a charge Abrahams rejected, saying her goal was to advance social justice and human rights to all. She said she had Indian relatives she planned to visit.On her flight back to Dubai, her passport was held by the flight crew and she planned to catch a flight to Pakistan on Tuesday. The Labour MP said she was “made to feel like criminal” and claimed she was granted an e-visa in October 2019 valid until October 2020. She said she had wanted to visit a bereaved relative before travelling to Pakistan for an official visit with the APPGK.Sources in the Indian high commission in London told TOI, “When she landed in Delhi, she did not have a valid visa. That is the fundamental point... She would have had ample notice of this before her flight.”They also said any British MP, office holder or diplomat needed to apply for a proper visa through the high commission and to get an e-visa in her position was a violation of visa rules. Denying that the decision had anything to do with her stance on Kashmir, a source said, “You also have to ask yourself, how does a person get into the limelight and bring news to the forefront again? I understand that after India, she was travelling to Pakistan.”A spokesperson for the UK foreign office said, “We are in contact with Indian authorities and have spoken with the Indian high commissioner to understand why Deborah Abrahams was denied entry to India. We provided consular assistance to her whilst she was in New Delhi airport.”Conservative life peer and businessman PIO Lord Ranger defended the Indian government’s action and took a shot at Abrahams and the Labour Party . He said, “Before we interfere in other countries, we should be mindful of the consequences for our own country. Labour during the election polarised British citizens of Indian and Pakistani origin by taking an anti-India stand. Should she undermine a secular and democratic country where equality for all is enshrined in the Constitution?”