I do have sympathy for them (for seperation). but, why did they not read what they were applying for? I am sure that the lawyer who took them for ride must be an Indian (how would he know otherwise about Hindu Muslim issues in Hajipur, unless Sah told them about it). Why did they not visit India for 16 years if they were making money... I can still understand why they do not want their son to stay in India.. The India they left hasn't changed a bit. The road to sucess in India is "still" paved with bribary (see GURU the movie).
ken and saritha should be arrested for leaving their child behind in a foreign country, all alone.
fearing the muslim community and seeking political asylum in the US is a veyr disgusting move.
and they now want the ministry of external affairs to help them malign the respect of this nation further!!!
guy goes to teh US to study, brings his wife two years later and has a kid there and doesnt bother to bring the kid when they get thrown out of the country...
and now they weep in public about how much they "miss" their son!!1
Rediff should stop supporting illegal activities. If you are an International student needing work permit then you go to the International student advisor in your school and not to a lawyer. Looks like Mr. Sah was sleeping during his student orientation !!
Besides, there is no Visa that lets a person stay in US for 16 years !! For F1 status you have to be a student for 16 yrs !! H1-B is only 6 yrs, in L1 you have to go back after 7 years. B1/B2 is given for a max of 10 yrs with a max stay of 1 yr at a stretch. It is crystal clear that while persuing their political asylum case the Sahs were residing illegally in the US and they were rightly deported. It is sad to see rediff holding the Sahs as a moral compass. No sympathies for illegals !! Showing sympathy to Sahs would imply that India has to mete similar treatment with regard to the Bangladeshi illegal residents.
RE:No support
by gabriel jesudian on Apr 08, 2007 03:07 AM Permalink
Unscrupulous people like him are the reason that Indians are treated like criminals when they go to foreign embassies to apply for visas.People like him make life difficult for everyone else.Im surprised he wasnt thrown in jail!
I am so surprised by the comments! Instead of expressing empathy with the Sahs, they have chosen to castigate them. This is precisely the ATTITUDE that prevents Indians in the US, from returning to India. In our own country, we are treated as outcastes.... socially and politically. What is the difference then, between staying on in the US and going back to India? At least, here, in US, there are no 'reservation' issues, and we don't have to deal with people like the ones who have written these nasty posts! Even earlier, there was an article about how S/w professionals, doctors are returning more and more to India. Instead of appreciating the move, people write that, it's because those people are failures that they are returning. It is really sad. Just the kind of crab mentality that makes the remaining Indians stay back in US. I am surprised though regarding the fact that the Sahs did not know that their lawyer had applied for Political asylum. But, in no way would I allow myself to join the ranks of all the people who have written 'against' them
RE:Sorry state of affairs!
by Siva Prasad Motamarri on May 22, 2007 09:29 AM Permalink
How come u expect support for these kind of meaningless cries, pains. Do u want the NRI's should treated as special ones leaving every thing just for India..? Will u be happy if there is NRI reservation quota. Money is the one of the best thing to differentiate India and US.. there u already earned money, gained citizenship status to ur child and then why r u still afraid of India.
RE:Sorry state of affairs!
by Girish Bangalore on Apr 07, 2007 04:02 AM Permalink
So you believe that they didn't know that the lawyer had applied for Political Asylum? That they stayed in US for 16 years without returning to India because of some unknown reason? that after being deported they have come up with this story of not knowing what their lawyer did? that they find it OK to leave their son in US even though they could have brought him to India? C'mon it is so obvious... that they stayed back in US for 16 years b'cos they precisely knew that after applying for asylum they cannot leave US as they would not be let back in. All else you are saying in the message is BS as they are based on your misguided judgement of the situation.
RE:Sorry state of affairs!
by Amit Shesh on Apr 07, 2007 06:54 PM Permalink
Yes I agree with you Girish that they probably knew their lawyer applied for political asylum and that is why they stayed there for 16 years, in the hope that their status would be made permanent. Legally I support their deportation fully. However just from a human standpoint, getting uprooted from your well-settled surroundings and from your life's work and savings is worth some sympathy at least.
I'm interested to know if you know the Sahs personally, since you seem to be accusing everybody who is against you of "misguided judgement". What makes you believe so strongly that they are fully wrong and nobody should feel bad for them?
RE:Sorry state of affairs!
by Curious Onlooker on Apr 07, 2007 08:12 PM Permalink
Sengupta... sounds bengali. After looking at their mindset wrt to cricket and ganguly issues, i think we should not even waste 2 seconds in considering whatever crap this guy has babbled
And I bet no one here knows them personally. Tell me what is right about them? I have pointed out al that is wrong about them. Human stand point sympathy? maybe for their kid and that too is their own making, they could have brought the son to India. Again Amit, lying and shaming your country and knowing fully well that they could be thrown out? It is all their own making. There are so many cheats like them, just b'cos they lied and a stupid reporter publishes does not make their story any better than all the cheats out there. Have your sympathy for people who try to make an honest living.
There's no freakin' way that the lawyer would just go 'n get political asylum without Ken knowin' about it. This is a load of BS*** crap.I live in USA 'n immigration laws r pretty strict here.I bet Ken asked for it.Since when Indian people have to take refuge in other countries based on some silly riots? This couple is so f**** fake. They need to bring their son back to India 'n get over it.For F*** sake stop misguiding people. 'n Pls don't take Indian people as some d*** A***. We know when someone's lyin' just to get some unwanted attention!! Go get a life U two!!
RE:kens are stupid...
by Amit Shesh on Apr 07, 2007 06:56 PM Permalink
Come on man! What would you do as a parent in this case? Bring him with you just so you don't miss him or let him stay wherever is better for him? He has been going to school there all his life, wouldn't bringing him here for an unknown period of time harm his academic career?
I doubt US immigration reads rediff and its comments :-)
Depends on what a parent considers as better. For me giving guidance to my kids and being there with them when they need us most is "better" than putting them in a boarding school away from us. Maybe your way of brining up kids is different.
Some things are missing here--why approach a lawyer for a work visa, why not an employer? And why apply for political asylum? Its difficult for me the lawyer could do such a big thing without these people even knowing--read before you sign!
Having said that, it is a sorry tale indeed. For all those who bashed rediff for this story, imagine they had to relocate from one state to another within India instead of one country to another, with their business all set up, their children going to school, etc. Can you imagine how difficult it is to relocate and start life afresh, especially when you have your life's savings and time invested elsewhere? sure, they could've brought their son with them here, but then he would've suffered academically. Remember that he can still be a US citizen even if they brought him with them, so keeping him there cannot be to retain his citizenship.
I wish people would view it a little more sympathetically instead of blindly categorizing it "reap as you sow" or "NRIs are all unpatriotic selfish beings". Simply living in India does not make one more patriotic. In fact if you are living in India and paying bribes to get work done, you're part of the problem instead of being part of a nation-building effort.
RE:RE:RE:sorry story, but slightly biased
by Girish Bangalore on Apr 07, 2007 04:08 AM Permalink
Sympathy for what? For lying to stay in US? For defaming one\'s own country with lies? For not bringing their child back to India when they could have and crying? For the story that their lawyer goofed up? I do not see any reason for showing sympathy. Show sympathy for people who would love to go to US but cannot and do not resort this ugly show. Show your sympathy where it is needed. These folks are lucky to even got to where they are and have this silly story published on Rediff.. they are cheats getting some free publicity courtesy Rediff.
RE:sorry story, but slightly biased
by Amit Shesh on Apr 07, 2007 06:50 PM Permalink
Come on man! What would you do as a parent in this case? Bring him with you just so you don't miss him or let him stay wherever is better for him? He has been going to school there all his life, wouldn't bringing him here for an unknown period of time harm his academic career?
I'm impressed that you think about one's country while lying; I sincerely hope everybody does that. However also remember that you are reading the same article as I am. So unless you personally know these people, your assumption that they are lying and getting only cheap publicity is as good as mine that they are not and they deserve some sympathy.
However certainly the whole story is not being told. The political asylum issue especially sounds very suspicious and I agree to the decision that they were deported. I'm sympathetic simply from a humanitarian point of view.
Like I have replied above, bringing the son to India not necessarily is a problem. There are great schools here. When parents are ready to send kids to other countries w/o any problem.. why the reverse logic does not work. I studied in India and work in US, my education is solely in India... I don't see a problem there.
Probably a little common sense will tell you whether they are lying or not. They seem to know all the right steps to run a motel business, they also didn't visit Indian for 16 years? When did the realisation happen to them that the lawyer goofed up? They knew it from day one and hence they did not visit India (they would not have been allowed back to US if they did). Let's say they came to know after a year or 2 when most usually people would try to visit India. In which case, they could have withdrawn the application. Once you know they started this stuff with a lie, then everything around them has no basis. You don't need to know them personally to know they are cheats.
