Vijayawada advocate offers legal help to Afghans seeking asylum

VIJAYAWADA: Raviteja Padiri, a Vijayawada advocate, is reaching out to Afghans who require legal aid to seek asylum in India after Afghanistan’s swift takeover by Taliban. In his message to Afghans through social media, he wrote: “I am writing to offer voluntary support in the form of legal services to those who would like to raise a claim for refugee status in India.”

Raviteja told TNIE that the Indian government has introduced a new category of electronic visa, called ‘e-Emergency X-Misc Visa’, with an aim to fast-track visa applications for entry into India. “It is valid for six months and during that time they could seek asylum through a UNHCR special officer deployed with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. It needs a certain documentation process, for which we are offering our legal services,” he explained. 

He said there are groups that face threat from Taliban. “They need to document how they are threatened and in which way they are considered a threat by Taliban.” He already has 3-4 people who approached him for help for asylum. Asked if any Afghan students in the country had approached them, Raviteja replied in negative.