HSMP changes: Migrant Indians appeal to Indian Government

07 January 2007

Faced with an uncertain future, approximately 30,000 Indians who came to the UK looking for better prospects under the 'Highly Skilled Migrants Programme' have appealed to the Indian government to take up their case with the British authorities and ensure justice for them.

The British government has victimised them by changing the rules of the Highly Skilled Migrants Programme (HSMP) under which they came to the UK, they said in a letter to President A P J Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The new immigration rules that came into effect on 7 November 2006, disenfranchise potential non-European migrants over 28-years-old and earning UK salaries less than 35,000 pounds per annum.

The temporary visas held by those who came here under HSMP make it impossible for them to get high-earning jobs and the changed rules make it impossible for them to stay on in Britain as previously promised by the Government.

In their letter to the Prime Minister, they also urged him to take up their plight with his counterpart, Tony Blair, and ensure that the new immigration rules were not made applicable to those who are already in the UK under the HSMP.

They said, "we have been made targets of undemocratic, illegal and ill-motivated changes. Due to these new changes, we who have made innumerable sacrifices in making UK our country of habitual residence would be forced to wind up our establishments, careers, schooling of our children and investments and will be asked to leave the UK.

"This has caused a lot of mental, social and economical suffering to us and our families," he said.

"Our legitimate expectation is, we who are invited to the UK under the HSMP scheme, should be treated according to the promises the UK Home Office made to us when we first entered the programme. New Rules are meant for new applicants and should not be enforced on existing migrants."

According to their spokesman, Amit Kapadia, their case is being supported by cross-party MPs and peers including the Conservative Shadow Immigration minister Damien Green, ruling Labour Party MP Andrew Dismore, Liberal Democrat Parliamentarian Michael Fallon and NRI member of the House of Lords, Bhikhu Parekh.

They also plan to file a suit in the High Court against the British Government and hold a demonstration in front of Parliament.

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