Unfair Criticism of USA and India Visa Delay or Denial

Feb 09, 2024 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Kaieteur News – Recent commentaries unfairly criticized the United States and India on issuance of visas. Few countries are as generous as India and USA (and Canada) in granting tourist or sports or investment visas. Almost every Guyanese seeks a visa (or migrate permanently) to America or Canada, as I found in widespread conversations. If there ever were visa free entry to USA or Canada, Guyana will become empty; even the nationalists and communists may pack up and leave for life in the imperialist countries.

Every country has visa or entry restrictions in order to vet the applicant and or monitor his or her movements for national security reasons. Since 9/11, USA Consulates have been cautious about issuing visas, vetting every applicant. And since 13/12, India’s version of 9/11 also in 2001 when terrorists from across the border attacked the parliament, India has been careful about visa issuance, investigating applicants including sports personalities. British cricketer Shoaib Bashir does not enjoy special privileges or exemption from vetting and was not denied a visa.

Most countries require a visa for entry into its territory unless there is an exemption.  Visas are granted on line or in person following an application process. The Consulate of the issuing country in a host country decides on visa issuance — to grant or to reject on the advice of the foreign ministry. The same holds true for Guyana.

For USA and Indian visas, as is the case for all countries, one has to file an application and be interviewed; a fee is also required.  For USA, the fee is required for an appointment for an interview; it is non refundable. For India, the fee is paid at issuance of the visa.

Non-immigrant visas fall under tourist, in transit, work, sports, business, investment, entertainment, or other.  The process could take days or even weeks depending on the country.  There are also emergency visas that can be granted the same day.

Many applicants in Guyana for USA visas were indeed denied. Visa issuance is at the discretion of the Consular section of the embassy. And some applicants were denied a visa because of risks of overstaying in USA and or viewed as a threat to the security of the American homeland or failed to demonstrate strong ties to their own country.

India is not known to deny any Guyanese applicant a visa. In fact, India granted hundreds of visas annually over the last several decades for various purposes including for studies on India government scholarships; several cricketers from Guyana and around the region received visas to play in India. And India rarely denies anyone in any part of the globe a visa unless the person is a threat to national security. Depending on the applicant and his or her and ancestral history, the process could take some time as there has to be a thorough investigation of the individual’s background. That is normal for all countries.

America, Canada and Western countries all have similar rules on visa issuance. In India, as is also the case in western developed countries, there is an investigation of the applicant including family history irrespective of race or religion. No one is exempt.  I am a kind of Indologist and an indophile, and my history was also investigated before a visa was issued to me when I first visited the homeland as a visiting scholar in 1985. Subsequently, when I went to India multiple times as a tourist, student, volunteer and lecturer, my application for a visa was thoroughly vetted. And when I was nominated for a national award from the Indian government for diaspora volunteerism, my ancestral link was investigated. An Indian agent interviewed a member of an ancestral relative about their and my history. With regards to the delay of issuance of a visa to Shoaib Bashir, it is noted that he was granted a visa and played in the second test that England lost. Rehan Ahmed was granted a visa and he played in the first and second tests. Moean Ali and Adil Rashid were granted visas to play for England in India multiple times as well as in the IPL. Bashir’s visa processing unfortunately took extra time. Regrettably, India’s bureaucracy moved slowly on the request.  It was a Consulate issue that has nothing to do with Prime Minister Modi who was also unfairly and unjustifiably criticized about his leadership.

Mr Modi has been deemed to be the most popular political leader according to an opinion survey carried out by Morning Consult, an American polling company. Annual surveys going back to 2015 found his approval rating above 80%. Polls by Indian psephologists also found him to be most popular politician in India in decades as indeed I found in surveys I conducted from 2014 when he was a candidate for office and after he became PM.

Yours truly 
Dr Vishnu Bisram

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• Guyanese, indophile, psephologists, Rehan Ahmed, USA (and Canada), USA Consulates

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