A very successful academic, Manikarnika Dutta, is at risk of being deported from the UK after the Home Office asserted that she spent too many days abroad doing research in India.

Dutta, 37, is a historian whose work for the University of Oxford took her to visit old archives in India and attend overseas conferences. However, the Home Office has strict regulations for individuals seeking indefinite leave to remain (ILR) on grounds of long-term residence.

Applicants can spend a maximum of 548 days abroad in 10 years. Dutta surpassed this threshold by spending 691 days outside the UK.

Study obligations caused overspending

Dutta initially entered the UK in 2012 on a student visa and later changed to a spouse visa after she got married to her husband, Dr. Souvik Naha, who has a visa under the "global talent" route.

Her solicitor, Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors, said Dutta's research visits were necessary for her academic purposes. “These research trips were not optional but essential to fulfilling her academic and institutional obligations. Had she not undertaken these trips, she would not have been able to complete her thesis, meet the academic requirements of her institutions, or maintain her visa status,” he said.

What was the response of the Home Office?

Last year in October, Dutta made an application for indefinite leave to remain based on her prolonged stay in the UK. Whereas her husband was granted his application, hers was refused.

She had her application for refugee status rejected not only for her travel record but also because they stated she doesn't have a "family life" in the UK — even though she had been living with her husband in south London for more than 10 years.

After requesting a review of the decision, the Home Office reaffirmed its refusal and informed Dutta:

“You must now leave the United Kingdom. If you don’t leave voluntarily you may be subject to a re-entry ban of 10 years and prosecuted for overstaying.”

"I never thought this would happen to me" 

Dutta, who is currently an assistant professor at University College Dublin, was shocked by the decision.

“I was shocked when I got an email saying I have to leave,” Dutta said to The Observer. “I have lived here for 12 years. A large part of my adult life has been lived in the UK since I came to the University of Oxford to do my master’s. I never thought something like this would happen to me.”

Her husband, Dr. Naha, a senior lecturer in post-colonial and imperial history at the University of Glasgow, was also furious:

“This decision from the Home Office has been terribly stressful for both of us. It has taken a psychological toll. I sometimes give lectures about these issues and have read articles about people affected, but never thought it would happen to us.”

Dutta's lawyer has initiated a legal action against the Home Office's ruling. The Home Office has consented to reconsidering the case in the next three months. Yet they could still retain the initial ruling, making Dutta's future uncertain.

Kandiah cautioned that such rulings could damage the reputation of the UK as a center of academic brilliance:

“If the UK genuinely seeks to position itself as a global leader in academia and innovation, it must foster an environment that is welcoming to top talent.”

A Home Office spokesperson replied: “It is longstanding government policy that we do not routinely comment on individual cases.”

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