Delhi High Court Seeks Centre's Stand On Plea By UK Anthropologist Filippo Osella Against Deportation From Kerala Airport

The Delhi High Court on Monday sought stand of the Central Government on a plea filed by renowned UK Anthropologist and social scientist Filippo Osella challenging his recent deportation from Thiruvananthapuram airport in Kerala on 23rd March.

Osella is also the Professor of Anthropology and South Asian Studies at the Department of Anthropology, School of Global Studies at the University of Sussex in UK.

Justice Yashwant Varma granted time to the counsel appearing for Centre for obtaining instructions in the matter while posting it for further hearing on October 12.

The respondents in the plea are Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Bureau of Immigration (MHA) and FRRO, Trivandram.

In his plea, Osella has challenged the the authorities' action of deporting him as being unconstitutional and arbitrary, alleging that no reasons for the same have been given to him till date despite various representations made.

"Reasons were disturbingly absent in this high handed and arbitrary conduct of the Immigration authorities at Thiruvananthapuram airport. By 4:30 AM, the Professor was literally marched back and bundled into the same aircraft, in which he had arrived and was unjustly deported - much like a hardened criminal," the plea adds.

The plea also seeks a direction to call for the records which led to Osella's deportation from Thiruvananthapuram Airport and also to quash the same.

Furthermore, the plea avers that during his previous visits, Osella had never faced any issue at immigration, and was never involved in any unlawful activities in his entire life.

"Since the authorities not only denied entry without any reason at all but also did not provide any reasonable opportunity to the Petitioner to present his side. The whole process was vitiated by duress and actuated by arbitrariness. This also falls foul of Wednesbury's principles of reasonableness and fairness in administrative action," the plea states.

Case Title: Filippo Osella v. Union of India and Ors.