Indian family to be deported from Israel amid crackdown on illegal migrant workers
Jerusalem: Four members of an Indian family, including two children, detained in Israel for staying illegally are likely to be deported soon after the completion of formalities, officials here said amidst a crackdown on illegal migrant workers.
Indian couple with two minor children were on Thursday arrested by Israel's immigration authority, according to a media report.
Inspectors of the country's Population and Immigration Authority broke into the home of Tina and Minin Lopez and arrested them along with their children- seven-year-old daughter Eliana and a one-year-old toddler, Ha'aretz Online reported.
The family from Karnataka was taken to the Beit Dagan detention facility in central Israel. They were released last night and are likely to be deported soon after the related formalities are completed, authorities said.
The couple reportedly came to Israel from India to work as nurses 12 years ago. Eliana, who is a second-grader in a school in Tel Aviv, and her one-year-old sibling were both born in Israel.
The family, except the younger child, had visited the Indian embassy in February 2018 for late birth registration of their elder child but did not complete the formalities.
Attorney David Tadmor, who represents the family, said, "the Immigration Authority, instead of adhering to instructions by the courts, continues its bullying actions."
"This is a scandal. The Immigration Authority has not begun implementing the instructions of the Justice Ministry and the appellate court. It isn't authorized at all to arrest children, and isn't allowed to put out arrest warrants. We will contact the Attorney General and demand that he immediately rein in the authority," Tadmor was quoted as saying in the report.
The arrest comes amidst a crackdown on illegal migrant workers throughout Israel. The Immigration Authority came under fire in recent weeks for arresting two Filipino children who were born in Israel while they were preparing to go to school.
Gena Antigo, 13, and Ralph Harel, 10, were released earlier this week on a USD 8,510 bail each after an appeals court ruled that their arrests and the decision to deport them and their mothers were wrong, the news report said.
The court ruling is said to be also based on the fact that the Immigration Authority had violated a new Justice Ministry regulation, which determines that minors under the age of 12 should receive a hearing before a decision is made to deport them.
A large number of students, teachers and parents demonstrated outside the Givon Prison against the detention of Antigo and Harel.
As the new school year began, the director general of the Immigration Authority, Shlomo Mor Yosef, promised that children of migrants would not be stopped during the school day, on their way to school or on their way home.
However, the Authority said the arrests of the Indian children do not violate this promise, as it does not apply to the time frame prior to leaving for school, the report said.
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Bihar CM Nitish Kumar's son Nishant to enter politics, says JD(U) leader
Patna (PTI): The entry of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's son, Nishant Kumar, into politics has been finalised, and the decision will soon be announced formally by the JD(U), state minister Sharwan Kumar said on Tuesday.
The senior JD(U) leader said Nishant will be given a "bigger responsibility" in the party.
"Now, it's clear, and it has been finalised that Nishant Kumar will join active politics. The party will make a formal announcement in a day or two. Party workers have been demanding Nishant's entry into politics for several years. Now party workers and supporters are upbeat with the decision ahead of Holi," he told PTI.
"He will be given a bigger responsibility in the party. What responsibility he is going to get will be decided in a day or two," said the minister.
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Asked if Nishant can be sent to the Rajya Sabha, Kumar said, "Anything can happen."
Kumar, who has been a minister in the state cabinet for more than a decade, is considered very close to the CM.
Social Welfare Minister Madan Sahni said JD(U) workers have been demanding Nishant Kumar's entry into active politics for several years.
"Now, it has been finalised. We are quite happy with the decision," Sahni, also a JD(U) leader, told PTI.
Rural Works Minister Ashok Choudhary said, "It is a big Holi gift for the party's rank and file and also the people of the state. Nishant's entry into active politics will certainly benefit the party. He is a photocopy of our leader, Nitish Kumar."
JD(U) ally BJP also welcomed Nishant's entry into politics.
"I welcome the new generation to enter politics. I thank the CM for leading the NDA in the recent assembly elections. It is a matter of great happiness that Nishant Kumar will now enter politics with the support of the CM and his family, and we wholeheartedly welcome him," Industries Minister Dilip Jaiswal told PTI Video.
"He is certainly an educated young leader, holding a BTech degree, and is a well-grounded individual. Every event happens in its own time, and perhaps now the right time has arrived. His entry should be warmly welcomed," said the former state BJP president.
Five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar will go to the polls on March 16. The last date for filing nominations is March 5.
The elections will be held as the tenures of JD(U)'s Harivansh Narayan Singh and Ram Nath Thakur, RJD's Prem Chand Gupta and Amarendra Dhari Singh, and RLM's Upendra Kushwaha are ending.
As per the latest tally in the state legislature, all five seats would now go to the ruling NDA. However, the RJD has decided to field its candidates to ensure the election is not decided unopposed.
