Take my family off blacklist, says father

Ranvir Lali Singh with son Bachint and wife Shubhneet Kaur at Auckland Airport. Photo / Brett Phibbs

The father of a 2-year-old New Zealand boy barred from entering India last week because he and his Indian-born mother are on the country's terrorism blacklist is demanding a full inquiry into their treatment, financial compensation and for the names to be wiped from the list.

"My wife and son were treated like criminals and have been totally humiliated by the Indian Government,"said Ranvir Lali Singh, a justice of the peace who is also the assistant general secretary of the New Zealand Sikh Society, Auckland.

"They have not even said sorry, and now we are demanding they make things right."

Mr Singh and several members of the Indian community aired their concerns over the incident at the weekend with the Indian High Commissioner Sureesh Mehta, who is in Auckland for the India Republic Day celebrations.

Mr Singh has also, through his lawyer Matt Robson, written to the high commissioner asking for a comprehensive inquiry into the incident, an official apology and compensation for his losses, including the air tickets costing $4500.

He is seeking financial compensation for the "loss of dignity and humiliation suffered as a direct consequence of the action of the authorities in India", and for the pair to be cleared of any allegation of wrongdoing.

His wife, Shubhneet Kaur, a New Zealand citizen from Manukau and son, Bachint Vir Singh, were denied entry into India and were turned back to New Zealand despite holding valid tourist visas. They were told their names were on the country's blacklist, and on arrival in New Zealand after three days of travel between airports, faced a Customs interrogation about why they were on India's possible terrorist list.

"Obviously this has caused great emotional turmoil and anguish, not only for the complainants but to expectant family and friends in New Zealand and India," Mr Robson wrote in his letter.

"It has caused great concern in the Sikh and Indian communities in New Zealand at the treatment handed out to two innocent people."

He said Mrs Kaur had visited India several times from New Zealand before and the refusal to let her and her son enter India effectively cut them off from family members there.

Mr Robson said he had also written to Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully and Customs Minister Maurice Williamson, requesting investigations into "the reason for the four-hour detention of Mrs Kaur and her son at Auckland Airport".

He also asked for help in getting the Indian authorities to remove their names from its blacklist.

Indian High Commission First Secretary J S Rana said the commission could not comment as India had still not responded to its query about why the pair - whose names are not on the commission's list of undesirable people - were denied entry into India at Delhi Airport.

"There are so many authorities in India involved and until somebody tells us what happened, we won't be able to know."