Chandigarh, June 13
Anyone from Punjab seeking political asylum in Great Britain will in all probability be sent back, says Sir Michael Arthur, British high commissioner to India, maintaining India is safe and a friendly country.
Talking to The Tribune here this afternoon, Arthur revealed that at least 10 to 12 applicants from Punjab were sent back to India and asked to apply for immigration through the proper channel.
Britain remained committed to providing political asylum to those who really deserved it. “It does not mean that no one from India could be given political asylum in Great Britain. There may be other considerations, including minority status or politics of political persecution being pursued against a person, before such an application is accepted for processing,” added the high commissioner, who held late in the evening meetings with Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Punjab chief of the Bharatiya Janata Party Rajinder Bhandari.
Earlier in the day, he met Punjab pradesh Congress committee president Shamsher Singh Dullo and leader of the opposition Rajinder Kaur Bhattal. The Punjab and Haryana chamber of commerce and industry felicitated him in the evening.
Arthur said his government had been in constant touch with its counterpart in India over those seeking political asylum or for working out cases of harassment or abandoning of British girls in forced or arranged marriages.
“At least 10 British girls have been rescued and taken back to Great Britain during the past one year as nearly 7,000
complaints from Indian girls against their spouses were under investigation.
“We are keen to create general awareness, especially against those consultants who promise applicants visas of Great Britain. We want to caution people that no agent or consultant is authorised to get any applicant any visa. We started on an experimental basis a campaign in 142 villages in Punjab from March this year advising people against falling into the trap of such consultants,” he said.
He said nearly 5.5 to 6 lakh Indians visited Great Britain for business, tourism or family reunions and as many as 5 lakh Britons came to India every year. On an average, the British high commission in India granted 1,000 visas a day of which nearly one-third went to applicants from Punjab.
Education and agri-business were two key areas in which Britain and Punjab could have more partnerships. A memorandum of understanding between Punjab Agricultural University and a British institute would be signed soon.
“It is agro-processing and post-harvest management in which British expertise could come in handy for Punjab farmers,” said Arthur, revealing that he had taken the initiative of visiting category II cities like Ludhiana and Jalandhar to explore the possibilities of new vistas of cooperation in bilateral relations.
Talking about trade, he said though the growth had been more than 24 per cent per annum, it had still not reached the expected level.
As far as allowing British law firms to open their offices in India was concerned, he said the Indian law minister would be in Britain soon and, hopefully, a way would be found. “I must reiterate that British lawyers are not going to enter or practise in Indian courts, but will only provide offshore consultancy to their clients.”
