Eleven Indian nationals have vanished after being allowed into New Zealand on special visas to perform at a Holi festival in Auckland.
Immigration NZ confirmed that of the 18 people who had entered the country to take part in the event alongside Bollywood singer Shibani Kashyap on February 21, only three had returned to India.
Of those remaining, four still held valid visitor visas, while the other 11 were on short-term limited visas that has expired on March 6 and were approved specifically for the festival, which was held at the Pukekohe Indian Association Centre, Stuff reported.
The trip was part organised by the Indian Consulate in Auckland, which was the point of contact for the group.
Immigration NZ’s director of visas Jock Gilray said the department was “prioritising contact with those who are here unlawfully on a case-by-case basis” but was unable to provide further detail for privacy reasons.
Mr Gilray also confirmed that fraudulent documents were used for visa applications for some members of the performer group, resulting in 13 short-term limited visas being approved instead of regular visitor visas to “mitigate concerns”.
“INZ verified that the event was genuine, including consultation with the Indian Consul General in Auckland who confirmed they were supporting the event,” he said.
“A robust and fair assessment process was applied to the individuals making up this group, including collaboration with our risk and verification teams in India.
“Concerns were identified with some of the visa applications – including fraudulent documents. Four visa applications were declined. Three applications were withdrawn.”
In November last year hundreds of Indian truck drivers had their commercial licences suspended by New Zealand transport authorities after an audit found fraudulent documents were used in their applications.
The following month Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement with India, adding thousands of working visa places for Indians and placing no caps on student visa numbers.
Header image: Left, Shibani Kashyap at the festival (Instagram). Right, promotional material for the event (Facebook).
The post Indian performers vanish after Holi show with Bollywood star in New Zealand first appeared on The Noticer.
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