BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday, denying relief to an overstaying Chinese woman, suggested that it is desirable to incorporate appropriate conditions in visa documents so that foreigners could leave India soon after expiry of their visa.
Further, the court said that an assurance can be insisted from the concerned foreign countries for the cancellation of the travel documents of their citizens co-terminus with the expiry of their VISA, so that their expulsion becomes easy consistent with the principles of Sovereignty and Reciprocity.
"An appropriate provision can also be made for discouraging their entry to India on subsequent occasions as well. This apart, the penalties/fines for overstaying aliens should be reasonably enhanced commensurate with the seriousness of the issue", the court said.
Justice Krishna S Dixit made "observations as well suggestions" while dismissing the petition filed by a 42-year-old Chinese national, Li Dong, who is residing at Srirangapatna in Mandya district.
However, the court said that the competent authorities in their discretion may conditionally permit the petitioner to stay in India till first flight to China is scheduled after resumption of international flight operations from India and not beyond that.
Despite issuance of 'Leave India Notices', she has been on Indian soil by quoting various reasons, even after expiry of the VISA, which was also extended due to Covid-19.
"It is also desirable to request the concerned foreign States to recall their Nationals immediately on the expiry of their travel documents. Precautionary measures may be many but the policy makers need to advert to them, keeping in view of all relevant factors", the court noted in the order.
The court noted that nowadays courts have been noticing a large chunk of cases involving overstaying of VISA and VISA violation by the foreigners.
In quite a few cases, an impression is gathered that the people concerned want to somehow perpetuate their continuance in the Indian Territory. For this, several devious strategies are adopted.
However, arguably petitioner's may not be one such case. On such case means is to commit some bailable offence and to trigger the prosecution which would more often than not be dragged for long, the court said.
Adding to this, the court said that the bail orders obtained by them are wrongly treated by the quarters that be as the VISA extensions, unmindful of the difference that galores between them, extension of VISA is one thing and enlargement on bail is another.
Bail bars the custody and ordinarily, it is granted by the courts whereas VISA is granted by the authorities of the union government in its absolute discretion. Therefore, in cases of VISA expiry, regardless of the bail order, the accused aliens have to be quarantined consistent with the observations of the high court in Christian Chideere Chukwu versus the State of Karnataka, the court said.