A day after British lawmaker Debbie Abrahams was deported from Delhi airport, government sources said on Tuesday that her visa was revoked as she was involved in anti-India activities. They said cancellation of the e-Business visa was conveyed to the MP on February 14.
Abrahams, a vocal critic of India's policies on Jammu and Kashmir, arrived in Delhi on Monday morning, but was told by the authorities that her visa was no longer valid. Abrahams was issued an e-Business visa on October 7 last year which was valid till October 5, 2020 for attending business meetings.
"Her e-Business visa was revoked on February 14, 2020 on account of her indulging in activities which went against India's national interest. The rejection of the e-Business visa was intimated to her on February 14," a source told news agency PTI.
The government sources dismissed Abrahams' contention that she should have been granted a 'visa on arrival', and said there is no provision of 'visa on arrival' for UK nationals in India.
The Labour Party MP chairs a British parliamentary group on Kashmir. She was among a group of UK MPs who issued formal letters expressing concerns over the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 in August last year.
'Pakistan proxy'
The Congress seems to be divided house in its stand over the government's decision to revoke the British MP's visa. Party leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Tuesday backed the deportation of Abrahams, saying she is not just an MP but a "Pakistan proxy".
"The deportation of Debbie Abrahams by India was indeed necessary, as she is not just an MP, but a Pak proxy known for her clasp with Pak govt and ISI. Every attempt that tries to attack India's sovereignty must be thwarted," Singhvi tweeted.
Singhvi party colleague Shashi Tharoor had, however, tweeted in support of Abrahams on Monday.
"I find it ironic that some of the same people who applauded me for going to Britain as an Indian MP & telling them off about their colonial misbehaviour, are attacking me for wanting India to grant a British MP the same privilege! If we can dish it out, we shld be able to take it," Tharoor wrote on the microblogging site.
With inputs from PTI
