Forty-five former inmates among stranded waiting to fly home

TDT | Manama

The journey back home for 45 Indian expatriates, who were among 901 inmates pardoned by His Majesty King Hamad in March, has reportedly been delayed due to the mass suspension of international flights caused by the global coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. “There are about 45 Indian nationals at the Alba deportation center, waiting to go back home from Bahrain,” Bahrain Keraleeya Samajam (BKS) president P V Radhakrishna Pillai told TDT.

Bahrain’s Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) in April announced an amnesty for migrant workers living illegally in the Kingdom until December of this year. Foreign nationals taking advantage of this initiative are not required to pay any fines to either regularise their residency or leave the country, as per the declaration.

The 45 former inmates intend to fly home under the amnesty, but they are currently unable to travel. “Efforts are being made for the urgent resolution for their relief, and there are about 15 of them who hail from the state of Kerala,” he said. The BKS intends to repatriate a total of 594 Indian nationals in four chartered flights in the coming weeks.

“The issue has been brought to the attention of the Indian Foreign Ministry, the authorities at the State Government of Kerala, and the Indian Embassy in Bahrain,” Pillai added. Despite Pillai’s claims, Indian Embassy second secretary P K Chowdhury told TDT that they have not received any information on the 45 former inmates.

He said that details and numbers of those granted amnesties are usually forwarded directly to the Indian Embassy by immigration officials. He told TDT: “Usually, we receive information about those who are awaiting repatriation from the local authorities, and we immediately accommodate such humanitarian cases.

“In coordination with the local authorities, we have fast-tracked the process whenever possible in cases that needed repatriation. Based on the legal status of each case, we have facilitated the repatriation for many irregular migrants so that they can go back home.”

He highlighted the case of Jayaprakash Vamadevan, who had been living in Bahrain as an unregistered migrant for the last 41 years. He was granted an exit permit and is set for repatriation today, supported by the Indian Embassy, as TDT reported earlier this week.